Mahfuz triggering a second Selangor Constitutional Crisis

Raja Sara Petra

Mahfuz Omar of PAS (or is it PAN? — because it looks like he himself is not sure which party he is in) said today that the three PAS Exco Members should not hide behind HRH the Sultan of Selangor. DAP Assemblywoman Yeo Bee Yin, in turn, said PAS is unIslamic, is a disgrace, and has no ethics and principles for remaining in the Selangor State Government.

Yeo is not as daring as Mahfuz is in attacking HRH the Sultan but when she attacks PAS by calling them unIslamic, disgraceful, no ethics, no principles, etc., she is indirectly attacking the Sultan. She knows that the reason the three PAS Exco Members are still in the Selangor State Government is because of the Sultan. So, by attacking them, she is actually attacking the Sultan without openly showing she is.

DAP knows what is going on behind the scenes and they know that Selangor Menteri Besar Azmin Ali has had an audience with the Sultan and has promised to retain the three PAS Exco Members and maintain status quo until the next general election in about a year or so from now. And that is the reason Mahfuz accused the three PAS Exco Members of ‘hiding’ behind the Sultan.

This allegation by Mahfuz has been brought to the attention of the Selangor Palace today and it has courted the Sultan’s displeasure. Mahfuz’s allegation tantamount to alleging that the Sultan, who is a Constitutional Monarch, is acting unconstitutionally by interfering in politics. That is a very serious allegation because this means the Sultan has acted in an ultra vires manner.

Mahfuz had better request an audience with HRH the Sultan of Selangor so that he can explain to His Highness what he meant by his allegation. If Mahfuz refuses to meet the Sultan to explain that can only mean he stands by his allegation and is trying to trigger a second Constitutional Crisis in Selangor after the first one three years ago. It will be interesting to see who blinks first in this gunfight between Mahfuz and His Highness.