By Joe Fernandez
IN cutting to the chase, we can say that the onus remains on the Agong. It’s increasingly apparent that perhaps he, and he alone at this juncture, can provide the necessary leadership for the way forward.
It can be said that the best leaders are born, unfortunately the majority of the rest may have “pretensions” and invariably fizzle out.
The Agong, if he thinks long and hard enough, will realise that he has to take the bull by the horns on reconvening Parliament and, if push comes to shove, on appointing a new Prime Minister.
If Prime Minister Mahiaddin Yassin does not reconvene Parliament soon, it’s a case of push coming to shove, the sword of Damocles would hang over his head.
It has been said so many times; no court will go against the Agong on reconvening Parliament and appointing a new PM. There’s consensus in the legal fraternity that Agong, under the Emergency Ordinance, can reconvene Parliament on his own accord. Under normal circumstances, the Agong acts upon the advice of the PM.
It appears increasingly unlikely that the incumbent will play ball. I stand corrected, but I will be happy if proven wrong.
The Prime Minister remains convinced, according to the grapevine, that undefined conventions and mysterious provisions in the constitution will somehow help “fend” off the Agong and brother sultans and leave him alone on the field.
The issue that arises does not revolve around whether the Prime Minister is right.
The focus must be on what the Agong will or will not do. The Opposition can be seen as stepping up pressure on the head of state. They want him to do what’s right for the people.
So many things are at stake. Taking too much time to reconvene the Parliament later may be a case of too little too late, and debating the fate of the hastily put together National Recovery Plan (NRP), which was announced on June 15 by the Prime Minister.
There are also other issues: vaccine purchases and roll-out, herd immunity, moratorium on bank loans, aid packages, re-opening the economy, and a post-vaccination plan including on handling future pandemic and endemic.
Three days after Istana Negara issued statements, two on June 16, 2021, on Parliament reconvening as soon as possible and ending the Emergency on Aug 1, the prognosis may not be that good.
The Mahiaddin Government, apparently still petrified by its minority status although the largest in the numbers game, appears to be digging in its heels. It’s being held to ransom by politics.
The Government seems blissfully unaware that it’s in fact digging its own grave if Parliament does not reconvene soon.
The Prime Minister can in fact walk away from it all, and never look back even if the heavens fall. There must be no interference. Being PM is not the be all and end all of life.
Mahiaddin may not be the big man, placing the people above everything else. He may not be able to get away from political personality cults, party politics, and new forms of tribalism and feudalism masquerading as democracy.
It’s a Greek tragedy in the making in Malaysia, both at a personal and national level. – June 19, 2021
Joe Fernandez is a long-time Borneo watcher and is a regular FocusM contributor.
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Focus Malaysia.
