KUALA LUMPUR – PAS president Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang has received a royal rebuke from the Sultan of Selangor, Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah, for disrespecting the Federal Constitution as well as the Malay Rulers, who are the guardians of Islam in the country.
In a five-page letter, Sultan Sharafuddin expressed deep disappointment over statements Hadi posted on February 20 on Facebook titled “Ketinggian Islam Wajib Dipertahankan” (The supremacy of Islam must be defended), in which the Marang MP called Malaysia’s constitution a colonial legacy aimed at sidelining Islam.
Sultan Sharafuddin criticised Hadi for disregarding the history of the Federal Constitution and its aims of ensuring racial harmony.
“If the history of the Federal Constitution is studied… we will find that the Malay Rulers, political parties and religious bodies had been directly involved in negotiations with the British and with constitutional experts from the Commonwealth to produce a Federal Constitution that is suitable for the racial polarisation in this country by placing Islam at the core.
“Therefore, it is wrong for Tan Sri Hadi to say that the Federal Constitution is a law created by the colonialists to sideline Islam,” the Sultan said.
The ruler, who chairs the National Council for Islamic Religious Affairs (MKI), also questioned if Hadi was deliberately being provocative to gain support among Malay Muslims.
Hadi, who had criticised the Federal Court judges’ ruling in the Nik Elin case that ruled 16 out of 18 Kelantan shariah criminal enactments as unconstitutional, was causing anxiety and division among the people, the Sultan added.
“What is the real purpose of such statements.
“Why is he (Hadi) now disputing the position of the Federal Constitution as the main law of the country when Islam has been designated as the religion of the Federation since the constitution was drafted in 1957?
“Does he no longer respect the Federal Constitution as the highest law of the land? Doesn’t this also illustrate that Tan Sri (Abdul Hadi) is being deliberately provocative and raising political polemics in order to gain support especially among Malay Muslims?” Sultan Sharafuddin said.
The letter expressing the sultan’s views was written by his private secretary, Datuk Muhamad Munir Bani, and dated February 27. It was addressed to Selangor PAS commissioner, Datuk Ab. Halim Tamuri, with Hadi’s statement as the subject.
Sultan Sharafuddin also said some of Hadi’s remarks showed his disregard for royal decrees.
One example was Hadi’s statement in March last year disputing the Sultan of Terengganu’s decree to politicians not to deliver lectures in mosques and surau in the state.
The ruler also took issue with Hadi’s remark in his February 20 post that said sultans should look to the afterlife and not at interests in this world only.
“Statements like this illustrate the uncivilised attitude and disrespect for the Malay rulers as the head of the Islam in their states. Hadi’s statement can be considered as insulting to the position of the Malay rulers,” Sultan Sharafuddin said.
The ruler then reminded Hadi that as MKI chairman, he had moved to strengthen Islam following the Nik Elin case by ordering for solutions to the overlap between state-enacted shariah laws with federal laws.
A special committee under MKI has been formed to study the matter and make recommendations, including the possibility of amending the Federal Constitution. – February 29, 2024