It’s time the Raja-Raja Melayu united against Mahathir’s 3rd Constitutional Crisis

By MT Webmaster Last updated Sep 15, 2018

The Raja-Raja Melayu never possessed any immunity and Mahathir did not remove it (mainly because there was no immunity to remove). But for more than 30 years Malaysians were told the Raja-Raja Melayu possessed immunity and that Mahathir was the great hero who removed the immunity of the Raja-Raja Melayu.

THE CORRIDORS OF POWER

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Umno suffered defeat in the 9th May 2018 general election because they were divided into so many camps. We had Umno, PAS, PPBM, PKR and PAN. In fact, some Malays were also in the DAP camp.

The Chinese, however were united. DAP claims that 98% of the Chinese voters voted for them or Pakatan Harapan.

Do you need to be a genius to understand what disunity can do to you?

In the 1980s, when Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad first took on the Raja-Raja Melayu, they, too, were divided. Only four of the Raja-Raja Melayu stood up to Mahathir. The other five either stayed neutral or swung over to Mahathir.

Dr Mahathir and Anwar Ibrahim planned to abolish the monarchy and turn Malaysia into a republic but their fallout in 1997 saved the Raja-Raja Melayu

To make it worse, while the Ruler himself may have supported or not opposed Mahathir, the number two (Raja Muda or Crown Prince) was opposed to his father’s (or brother’s) ‘pro-Mahathir’ stand. In short, not only were the nine Raja-Raja Melayu not united, within each Royal Household the number one and number two were not on the same page.

And that was why, after failing in the First Constitutional Crisis in the 1980s, Mahathir came back for a Second Constitutional Crisis in the 1990s and this time he won. Through an Act of Parliament, the veto power of His Majesty the Agong was removed and Parliament could now pass laws without the consent and/or signature of His Majesty the Agong.

Now, let us address the first fallacy.

Malaysians talk about how Mahathir removed the immunity of the Raja-Raja Melayu (and some hail Mahathir as the hero for clipping the wings of the Raja-Raja Melayu).

That is fallacy number one.

The Raja-Raja Melayu have to either unite or get massacred by Mahathir and Pakatan Harapan

What immunity did the Raja-Raja Melayu possess, which Mahathir removed? We talk about the immunity of the Raja-Raja Melayu and how Mahathir removed it and yet we cannot identify what that immunity was.

The Raja-Raja Melayu never possessed any immunity and Mahathir did not remove it (mainly because there was no immunity to remove). But for more than 30 years Malaysians were told the Raja-Raja Melayu possessed immunity and that Mahathir was the great hero who removed the immunity of the Raja-Raja Melayu.

Fellow Malaysians, you have been conned. This was a spin to give an impression that Mahathir took on the Raja-Raja Melayu and won. If not, what can Mahathir show for the First and Second Constitutional Crises?

On the Act of Parliament to remove the veto power of His Majesty the Agong, the Raja-Raja Melayu lost nothing. Zilch! Zero! Nada!

Yes, that’s right, it is Malaysians and not the Raja-Raja Melayu who rugi with the removal of the veto power of His Majesty the Agong. That means there are no longer any checks and balances and Parliament can do whatever it likes.

The Sultan of Terengganu, Sultan Ali Shah, was removed from the throne and then ‘erased’ from the history books

Article 153 in the Constitution can be repealed, Islam can be removed as the religion of the Federation, Bahasa Melayu can be removed as the National Language, and so on. And there is nothing His Majesty the Agong can do about it because His Majesty’s consent and signature are not required any longer.

There are those who say that the immunity of the Raja-Raja Melayu has been removed because now they can be taken to court if they commit a crime.

So, what is wrong with that? In Islam no one has immunity from punishment, even Raja-Raja. So, if the Raja-Raja Melayu have immunity from punishment when they commit a crime, that goes against Islam. And, as heads of Islam, the Raja-Raja Melayu should be subjected to Islamic law and not exempted from Islamic law.

Sultan Musa Ghiatuddin Riayat Shah, sacked by the British and exiled for 10 years for his perceived anti-British stand

So, that is good, not bad, and it has always been so since long before Merdeka, not just since the 1980s or 1990s. Hence, what is new?

The Sultan of Selangor, Sultan Musa Ghiatuddin Riayat Shah Ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Alauddin Sulaiman Shah, was sacked by the British in 1945 and exiled (detention without trial) for 10 years because he was anti-British. (Have you seen his name on any buildings, stadiums, mosques, libraries, etc., anywhere in Kuala Lumpur or Selangor other than ‘Jalan Raja Muda Musa’ in Kampung Baru?)

The Sultan of Terengganu, Sultan Ali Shah ibni Almarhum Sultan Sulaiman Badrul Alam Shah, was also sacked by the British in 1945 for alleged crimes His Highness had committed. He died 51 years later without receiving any pension and he is the only Terengganu Sultan without any street names, etc., named after him.

Mausoleum of Sultan Mahmud Shah II, executed for murder, in Kota Tinggi, Johor

And these two Sultans were not the only ones punished for their crimes or perceived crimes (I will not mention the other states lest the present Raja-Raja Melayu on the thrones of their respective states feel offended).

So, if you think Mahathir was the one who made it possible to bring the Raja-Raja Melayu to court or to punish them for any crime they commit, then you are a victim of government propaganda. Ever since 1699 when Sultan Mahmud Shah II was executed for murder, no Raja-Raja Melayu was above the law or had immunity.

Anyway, Mahathir is about to embark on his Third Constitutional Crisis. And if the nine Raja-Raja Melayu remain split 5-4 like back in the 1980s and 1990s, be prepared to get clobbered, as A. Kadir Jasin said.