Hadi knows what he is doing

By MT Webmaster Last updated Sep 12, 2014

Hadi knows this and that is why he sent a letter with three names. He knows this is what he must do and he cannot do anything other than that. Hence Hadi knows what he is doing while PKR and DAP do not.

THE CORRIDORS OF POWER

Raja Petra Kamarudin

PAS President Abdul Hadi Awang is being cursed and vilified in the social media, in particular but not confined to comments by Malaysians of Chinese ethnicity. They accuse Hadi of all sorts of things, which I do not really need to repeat here. I suppose their lack of understanding regarding palace protocol make them abusive in their comments.

See a copy of the letter below addressed to PKR President Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail. PAS and DAP received similar letters, duplicates of the one below. Hence there were three letters with the same message from the palace.

The first point to note is that the palace did not write to Pakatan Rakyat. And the reason the palace did not write to Pakatan Rakyat is because Pakatan Rakyat is a loose coalition and not a registered or legal entity. Hence, technically, Pakatan Rakyat does not exist.

And that was why the palace sent three letters, one each to PKR, DAP and PAS, and not one letter to Pakatan Rakyat. PKR, DAP and PAS are legal entities. Pakatan Rakyat is not. So the palace only talks to legal entities and not to one that is not.

The fact that Pakatan Rakyat, not being a legal entity, does not have locus standi means the palace need not take into consideration any decision made by the loose coalition. What the palace wants to know is what decision have PKR, DAP and PAS made regarding the candidate for the new Menteri Besar who shall replace Khalid Ibrahim — who has sought the permission of HRH the Sultan of Selangor to resign from his post of MB.

In short, the palace is not interested in what Pakatan Rakyat wants. The palace wants to know what PKR, DAP and PAS want. And that is why the palace sent three letters, one each to PKR, DAP and PAS, and not one letter to Pakatan Rakyat.

While PKR and DAP do not seem to understand this, PAS does. And the fact that the palace sent the letter to PAS (plus to PKR and DAP as well) means the palace wants a response from PAS and not from Pakatan Rakyat. Hence PAS must now respond to the palace.

The letter to PAS, just like the one to PKR and DAP, said that HRH the Sultan, according to the Articles of the Selangor State Constitution 1959, telah diperuntukan dengan kuasa budi bicara mutlak di dalam perlantikan seorang Menteri Besar bagi Kerajaan Negeri Selangor.

Note that that part of the letter is in bold. And the reason it is in bold is so that PKR, DAP and PAS will take note of it. And what the palace said is: it is provided for by the Articles of the Selangor State Constitution 1959 that HRH the Sultan has absolute powers to use his discretion in the appointment of the Selangor Menteri Besar.

That is point number one. PKR, DAP and PAS can suggest or propose the candidates for MB. However, HRH the Sultan will decide.

Point number two is that the palace has asked for lebih dari dua (2) nama. This translates to more than two names. So this has to be at least three (3) names and can even be four, five, six or ten. There is no maximum number. But the minimum must be three (3).

PKR, DAP and PAS may have had a meeting to decide on this matter and the meeting may have mutually agreed to just one name, Dr Wan Azizah. But that was before the letter from the palace of 27th August 2014. Hence new events have overtaken the event of the earlier meeting prior to the letter from the palace dated 27th August 2014.

For all intents and purposes, the pre-27th August 2014 meeting and the decision made at that meeting is now outdated. That was a meeting and a decision made before the letter from the palace. The 27th August 2014 letter from the palace now overrides whatever was decided earlier.

If PAS sticks to the one-name decision made before 27th August 2014, that would mean PAS is sending a message to the palace that the letter dated 27th August 2014 is rejected. PAS would be telling HRH the Sultan that it cannot accept the letter of 27th August 2014.

And PAS knows better than to do this.

The position of the palace is very clear. On 27th August 2014, the palace wrote to PKR, DAP and PAS asking for more than two names. So all three parties must reply to that letter with a proposal for more than two names. And as long as they do not, then the letter has not been replied to. Until PKR, DAP and PAS reply, this matter would remain outstanding.

And this would mean nothing is going to happen until PKR, DAP and PAS reply to the letter from the palace with their more than two names. And even though PAS has replied giving their proposal for three names, PKR and DAP have not. And since there are three letters then all three letters require a response.

So, since nothing is going to happen until the palace receives three letters with more than two names on each letter, Khalid Ibrahim will remain as Menteri Besar. Until three letters with more than two names on each letter is sent to the palace, HRH the Sultan will just sit and wait.

Raja Petra Kamarudin RPK