BN Perak Government is Maybe Legal But Not Moral
Khoo Kay Peng
Prime Minister Najib Razak told Perak folk today to accept that Barisan Nasional’s (BN) takeover of the state government earlier this year was done according to the law.
“I hope the people will accept that the due process of law has taken place in Perak; from the formation of the government and then back to the process in court."
“We will not do anything against the provisions of the law. We will follow the rules."
“The starting point was then they stole one of our ADUNs. So, they played the game actually, it was not us,” he said.
Najib's attempt to justify the Perak power grab casts doubt over his ability to understand the change this country needs and his ability to deliver it through his leadership in UMNO.
Perak power grab may have been endorsed by the courts but this does not mean that the process cannot be subjected to a full scrutiny by those who are well-versed with the constitutional process.
At best, the court's verdict is inconclusive. There were legal opinions which suggested that the court may have erred by ruling against the legality of the duly elected chief minister and assembly speaker. Some have questioned the use of public institutions e.g. the police, the state secretariat etc. to interfere with the legislature.
Another glaring flaw in Najib's assertion is the opinion of voters of the three constituencies where their elected representative had defected. Did the assemblymen seek a conclusive agreement from the voters? No. These voters would have welcomed the idea of being able to vote on their assemblymen's decision to defect.
