Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, January 11) – The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on Saturday expressed its grief over the death of Sultan Qaboos bin Said, who ruled Oman for five decades.
In a statement the foreign affairs department said, “The Filipinos all over the world join the Omani people in mourning the death of Sultan Qaboos.”
The foreign affairs department said that the late monarch was a “benevolent host to thousands of Filipinos who have made Oman their second home.”
DFA also remembered the late Sultan of Oman as the “leading player in promoting peace and security in the Middle East.”
Oman’s state media announced that the sultan died on Friday, but did not mention the cause of his demise.
He was 79.
“It is with hearts filled with faith in Allah and his Providence, and with great sorrow and deep sadness that … His Majesty Sultan Qaboos Bin Said, who passed away on Friday, 10th of January 2020, after establishing a comprehensive renaissance over the past 50 years since he assumed power,” Oman News Agency quoted the ruling royal family council as saying.
A three-day period of national mourning has also been declared, the state media added.
Sultan Qaboos presided over an absolute monarch but was seen as progressive since he assumed power, which he seized from his father, in 1970, CNN reported.
Under the Omani’s 1996 Constitution, the royal family must determine the next Sultan of Oman within three days of Qaboos’ death. If they fail in doing so, a letter penned by Qaboos will be opened before government officials, revealing his choice for his successor, CNN said.
