Karpal Singh has been quoted saying, “As long as I live, I will
continue to fight for a non-Malay to be prime minister”. The Malaysian
Federal Constitution under Article 43 (2) (a), “the Yang di-Pertuan
Agong shall first appoint as Prime Minister to preside over the Cabinet a
member of the House of representatives who in his judgement is likely
to command the confidence of the majority of the members of that
House;…”.
Dr Kua Kia Soong has written a commentary with regards to the
statement made by the learned historian, Prof Emeritus Khoo Kay Kim.
Khoo claimed that Malays were the natives of Tanah Melayu, Malaysia’s
name before independence, and that the Malays formed the majority in the
country.
Needless to say, the supreme law of the land in Malaysia is Federal
Constitution. The law does not set down any qualification on the race of
the Prime Minister. The convention of being a Malaysian Prime Minister
has been a Malay and Muslim male. However, as a political realist, and
not a strict legal positivist, and as a non Malay Malaysian, I’m of the
view that they were both right.
Legally, anyone could be the Prime Minister of Malaysia as long as he
is Malaysian and commands the confidence of majority of the members of
the Parliament. Politically speaking, only a Malay could be the Prime
Minister, considering Khoo’s historical point of view as per the current
situation in Malaysia.
The hard truth that we must accept is, either you are a non Malay or
Malay. Malaysia consists of approximately 22 million population, of
which more than 60% of the population is of Malay-Muslim race. The human
primordial instinct in addition to the general lack of advanced,
critical liberation of thoughts, owed to the aggravated factors
post-Mahathirism period, would never allow himself to choose someone out
of his race.
We, as a Malaysian have been strongly poisoned by the effect of
racial and religious segregation in the public society. The main issue
should be – what quality the next Prime Minister, if there is a
successor of Prime Minister Najib Razak should possess and be able to
gain the confidence of majority of the Malaysians?
In view of all the issues of race, religion, gender, sexual
orientation, etc (factors to be discriminated upon an inborn cause), we,
as a part of society, should have moved beyond this tribal instinct of
categorisation when voting the Prime Minister.
There is a public duty for all eligible voters to be able to see
through this and to choose only the capable, charismatic, confident, and
upholds the rules of law, principle of justice, and common underlying
values which enshrined through the unity of all the members of society.
I would urge the discussion on the qualification of Prime Minister
move beyond race and religion and focus on the quality of a Prime
Minister should possess.
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