Dire Straits in Perak: the Sultan didn’t swing

Protestors stepping on an image of Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak. (Photo: Choo Choy May, MalaysianInsider)

Yesterday, Sultan Azlan Shah of Perak decided to favour the case presented to him by Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak of the Barisan Nasional (BN), that BN held the confidence of the majority of the Perak state assembly and therefore deserved to take government. The BN had the support of 28 of its assemblypeople and three independents who had defected from Pakatan Rakyat (PR), granting them a majority of three against PR.

Citing provisions in the Perak constitution the Sultan, a former Lord President of the Malaysian High Court, ordered Nizar Jamaluddin, at that time Chief Minister of the Pakatan Rakyat government, to step down so a BN government could be sworn in.

Nizar refused to step down. He argued the case that the three independents did not have valid claim to their seats having signed pledges after election last March to the effect that they would lose any office if they left their party. From PR’s perspective it was a case of their 28 seats against 28 BN seats with 3 vacancies. PR has already launched a law suit to have their interpretation recognised. Nizar’s request for the Sultan to dissolve the state assembly and call for fresh state-wide elections was turned down.

This morning, as Nizar turned up for work at the government offices he was escorted off the premises by the police. The other state executive councilors were requested to leave, following which the new chief minister was sworn in this afternoon. PR has threatened to launch another law suit against both the Sultan and BN challenging the legitimacy of the BN government, claiming it is the result of a “coup”.

Protestors confront riot police today as the new chief minister is appointed. (Photo: Choo Choy May, MalaysianInsider)

Last night following the Sultan’s decision over 10,000 people gathered in Perak’s capital, Ipoh in support of Nizar and PR. A poster of Najib Razak was stamped upon and driven over by protestors. Around 5,000 protestors gathered today to object to the swearing in of new chief minister Zambry Abdul Kadir. The Federal Reserve Unit riot police charged the crowd and fired tear gas when they refused to disperse. A 10-year old who passed out was taken to hospital.

A man down after riot police fired tear gas. (Photo: Choo Choy May, MalaysianInsider)

Great disappointment has been voiced by members of the public, especially online where even Wikipedia entries for defectors have been vandalised. Constitutional scholars are weighing in on the rightness or wrongness of the Sultan’s decision. A constitutional stand-off of sorts is now in effect. Lawyer Malik Imtiaz of HAKAM (National Human Rights Society) has weighed in favouring the dissolution approach.

Dissolving the state assembly is supported by those who favour a PR government, as the majority of Perak voted for a PR government last March. The defectors, it seems, were elected largely for the parties they represented rather than their individual appeal. Dissolution and fresh elections would therefore be more democratic in reflecting voter choice. It would also require more funds to stage another election.

“Forgive us, O God, for our sins…strengthen our faith…protect us from the abuse of UMNO and a nobility that oppresses us.” – PAS cleric at prayers last night.

The Sultan’s option on the hand, goes against voter choice, but promises a quick and cheap solution in the short-run. Whether Perak voters will quietly resign themselves to a BN government once again is unclear. Certainly, many must feel that they were robbed of their political choice. The alternative is that this decision will deepen resentment against the BN and offers little guarantee of stable government in Perak.

Others have pointed out that the new BN government is also almost entirely Malay, with a single Chinese member, the defector Hee Yit Foong (whose service centre boasted a condemnatory banner last night). The new PR opposition on the other hand is primarily Indian and Chinese in composition. The inter-ethnic balance that has been for so long considered an essential feature of Malaysian government is now gone in Perak.

For now, it seems that the battle will stay off the streets and move to the courtrooms and media as partisans debate the accuracy of the Sultan’s constitutional decision. It is also unclear how the new BN government of Perak will be able to govern effectively as sentiments are tense. The political crisis in Perak is not over.

For more photos, see this.