Reflecting on the law
By SHAD SALEEM FARUQI
July 9 was not an ordinary moment as many feared turmoil and confrontation appeared imminent. And so the King found it necessary to don the mantle of a statesman. The nation is the better for it.
MANY readers have enquired whether Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin had acted constitutionally in intervening in the Bersih 2.0 affair.
Some people think His Majesty’s measured advice to both parties to withdraw from the brink and to avoid confrontation did much to enhance his image as an independent, impartial monarch who is above politics and who rises above the passions and prejudices of ordinary people.
Others believe that Tuanku’s grant of an audience to Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan, head of an organisation that had been declared illegal by the authorities, went beyond the bounds of constitutional propriety. Further, the Istana’s refusal to similarly entertain Ibrahim Ali was a rebuff to the controversial Perkasa chief.
I think the King acts fairly and also acts as another 'check and balance' mechanism.
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