Dr M. Bakri Musa on the Perak Crisis

The following quotes are from Dr M Bakri Musa:

"...The reputation and salvation of (Perak Sultan) Raja Azlan specifically, and that of the institution of Sultans generally, would require of him to look beyond the law for a solution.

Contrary to the assertions of constitutional scholars and legal practitioners, this is not a legal issue.

Its solution does not lie with the court system. Nor does it require of us to return to the old feudal ways of blind loyalty to the sultan, as some traditionalist would wish.

The continued RELEVANCE and indeed SURVIVAL of our Sultans depend on their ability to read the rakyats’ mood CORRECTLY , NOT on some cultural traditions, court precedents, or political expedience.

What surprised me is that this power grab is being led by a Sultan who is generally acknowledged as the most enlightened of the lot, having served as the nation’s chief justice, and who has, as his Crown Prince, an intellect schooled in the finest universities of the West.

That they chose to revert to their feudal past given the slightest chance was a great disappointment.

With a deeply polarized citizenry, the days of a supra majority government are gone. It is for this reason we must have an institution like the sultan that can act as an honest broker so as to maintain political neutrality and stability. Now that too is gone.

That is what disappoints me most with this latest political crisis in Perak. If a sultan as enlightened as Raja Azlan could not disentangle himself from this political morass, we have LITTLE hope that the OTHER sultans would be any better.

There is a silver lining to all this. Thanks to Nizar’s Jebat-like stance of “Patek menyembah mohon derhaka!” Malaysia will never degenerate into an absolute monarchy.

In times like this, we have to savor such blessings!

- Dr. M. Bakri Musa