Malaysia’s prime minister must be Malay Muslim, says historian

KUALA LUMPUR, June 6 — The prime minister of Malaysia must be a Malay Muslim even though there is no article in the Federal Constitution which prevents non-Malays from holding the post, because the majority of the country’s citizens are Malays, said an eminent historian today.      

Prof Emeritus Tan Sri Dr Khoo Kay Kim (picture) said everyone must accept the reality that Malays were the natives of Tanah Melayu, Malaysia’s name before independence, and that the Malays formed the majority in the country.      

“Even the British recognised Malaysia as the ‘Malay States’ before it achieved independence. “From a historical perspective, the highest rulers of the land before independence were the Malay kings who were Muslims,” he said.  

He was speaking to reporters after a guest appearance on the “In The Special Radar” (Dalam Radar Khas) programme titled “Democracy in Malaysia: Non-Malay Prime Minister” by Bernama Radio24 in collaboration with news portal AntaraPos.com today.  

The other guests were Higher Education deputy minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah and Keadilan youth movement chief Shamsul Iskandar Mohd Akin.

The issue of a non-Malay prime minister was raised by DAP chairman Karpal Singh recently who stressed that for as long as he lives he would continue fighting to ensure a non-Malay holds the post of prime minister.  

Saifuddin said the issue should never have been raised by Karpal as the opposition leader was also Malay Muslim.  

“When the opposition itself chose a Malay as its leader, why bring up the issue of a non-Malay prime minister,” he said.  

Shamsul Iskandar noted that Malaysia adopted a Constitutional Monarchy and parliamentary democracy with Malays having special privileges compared to the other races in the country.  

He concluded that the Malays should not be worried about the veteran member of parliament’s passing remarks. — Bernama