What the former Chief Justice failed (or was afraid) to mention
But in 2018 Umno lost power. And now Umno is weak. For 75 years Umno bullied the Raja-Raja Melayu and kept the Istana in check. Today, Umno is struggling, and the Raja-Raja Melayu need no longer fear Umno. And that is why, today, we see Seri Paduka Baginda Yang di-Pertuan Agong interfering in politics.
NO HOLDS BARRED
Raja Petra Kamarudin
There are two must read items regarding what former Chief Justice Tun Abdul Hamid Mohamad has to say about the latest ‘Constitutional Crisis’ — if I may be permitted to call it that.
READ HERE:
1. Ex-CJ Says Harmony Between Palace and Govt a Thing of The Past
2. Ex-CJ Says Palace Acted Outside Constitution, Giving Perception of Interference in Politics
What Tun Hamid said is correct and may touch the nerves of many within palaces circles. But the truth always hurts and men of honour and principles such as Tun Hamid need to call a spade a spade even if it invites personal injury and tragedy.
In fact, I was told the knives are being sharpened even as we speak and it may not be too long before Tun Hamid suffers the fate of Thomas Becket, the Archbishop of Canterbury, who was murdered in 1170 for criticising King Henry II of England.
Becket was later made a saint (St Thomas of Canterbury), so if anything happens to Tun Hamid, maybe we can also declare him St Hamid, what the Malays would call keramat.
Anyway, maybe Tun Hamid is too polite to tell us why there is this latest ‘Constitutional Crisis’ (whether it is the third, fourth or fifth…I am not too sure). So allow me to tell you the untold story left out by Tun Hamid.
The truth is the relationship between the Istana and the politicians (in this case we are talking about Umno) has never been good. For the last 75 years since 1946, both sides just pretended it was good.
In the first place, why was Umno formed in 1946?
Umno will tell you it was to save the institution of the Raja-Raja Melayu. That is utter bull. Umno was formed in 1946 because the Malays felt the Raja-Raja Melayu had sold out to the British colonial masters.
Britain wanted to form the Malayan Union where the non-Malays would be granted automatic citizenship, and the Raja-Raja Melayu had agreed. This outraged the Malays who then formed Umno to oppose the plan for the Malayan Union.
But Umno could not say Umno was formed to oppose the Raja-Raja Melayu because the Raja-Raja Melayu had sold out the country. So they had to say Umno was formed to oppose the British plan to form the Malayan Union.
But then if Umno opposed the Malayan Union, that would mean Umno also opposed the Raja-Raja Melayu as well, because the Raja-Raja Melayu had agreed to the formation of the Malayan Union.
Umno was not formed to save the Raja-Raja Melayu. Umno was formed to oppose the Raja-Raja Melayu who had agreed with the British plan to form the Malayan Union. But not many Malays would admit this, not even the former Chief Justice Tun Abdul Hamid Mohamad.
Now, let any Umno leader come out and openly admit this is not so. Umno was formed 75 years ago to oppose the British plan to form the Malayan Union WITH THE AGREEMENT OF THE RAJA-RAJA MELAYU.
They will tell you that the Raja-Raja Melayu were tricked into signing the Malayan Union Agreement. That, again, is utter bull.
The British set up the Malay College Kuala Kangsar (MCKK) on 2nd January 1905 to educate the sons of the royal family with the best English education. Yes, 1905.
The Malayan Union happened in 1946, which is 41 years later. By then the MCKK graduates from the Istana would be in their 50s and some had even gone to England. Is Umno telling us that the Raja-Raja Melayu were uneducated and were tricked by the British?
My late grandfather, Raja Sir Tun Uda, was also a graduate of the MCKK and before WWII he acted as the adviser to His Highness the Sultan of Selangor. My grandfather not only spoke perfect English, but he even sounded like Sir Winston Churchill when he spoke. He was twice the Menteri Besar of Selangor and the first Governor of Penang. And is Umno telling me my grandfather was uneducated and could be tricked by the British?
My grandfather was more educated than the entire Cabinet of Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s government. The fact he was not only the adviser to the Sultan, but the Japanese negotiated with him the surrender of the Sultan (who my grandfather was hiding) says a lot about his status in the Selangor palace.
Anyway, I am digressing. The point I want to make is Umno was not formed to ‘save’ the Raja-Raja Melayu. Umno was formed to oppose the Malayan Union and the Raja-Raja Melayu. And that was 75 years ago in 1946.
Hence the relationship between Umno and the Istana has never been one of love but one of live and let live. You keep on your side of the fence, and I will keep on my side of the fence.
And since before Merdeka Umno has always been strong. So they always won in any face-to-face with the Istana. But when Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad became prime minister in 1981, he made sure the Raja-Raja Melayu behaved themselves. And he challenged the Raja-Raja Melayu with two Constitutional Crises in the 1980s and 1990s.
But in 2018 Umno lost power. And now Umno is weak. For 75 years Umno bullied the Raja-Raja Melayu and kept the Istana in check. Today, Umno is struggling, and the Raja-Raja Melayu need no longer fear Umno. And that is why, today, we see Seri Paduka Baginda Yang di-Pertuan Agong interfering in politics.
Yes, this is the time for the Raja-Raja Melayu to divide and rule the politicians. Basically, it is what Sun Tzu teaches in his ‘Art of War’. It was what the British did in British India and British Malaya. And politicians from both sides of the political divide keep running to Istana Negara to ask for help. So the Raja-Raja Melayu keep the politicians fighting with each other, which only makes them weaker and the Istana stronger.
