AGONG TITAH THE THREE TAN SRI TO OUST NAJIB

Sarawak Report said the three Tan Sri received a royal command or titah to oust the Prime Minister. Many Malaysians believe that what Sarawak Report writes is the truth and would not doubt that the Agong is behind the move to give the US Government classified information and documents, which Abu Kassim confessed he did.

THE CORRIDORS OF POWER

Raja Petra Kamarudin

According to Tun Dr Mahathir’s Mohamad’s Sarawak Report, the three Tan Sri (ex-MACC chief Abu Kassim Mohamed, ex-Attorney-General Abdul Gani Patail, and ex-Bank Negara Governor Zeti Akhtar Aziz) were acting on the royal command or titah of His Majesty the Agong in their attempt to oust Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak.

That is certainly a most interesting development because this would be the first time in Malayan/Malaysian history since the Federation was created in 1948, and the position of Agong created in 1957, that the Monarch has directly involved himself in politics and specifically in a plot to oust the Prime Minister.

No doubt we have seen in the past in states such as Perlis, Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang, Perak, Negeri Sembilan, Johor and Selangor where the Ruler clashed with the Menteri Besar (which makes it eight out of nine states with Rulers — and nine out of nine if you include the recent removal of Mukhriz Mahathir as the Kedah Menteri Besar). There have undoubtedly been many cases where the Menteri Besar had to be removed to appease the Ruler but never before until today has the Agong plotted or ordered the ouster of the Prime Minister.

Normally Sarawak Report bases its information on deep throats, leaked information, and information it buys from insiders (sometimes at a cost of millions like in the Xavier Andre Justo affair). So most Malaysians would believe what Sarawak Report writes and will swear on their mother’s grave thatSarawak Report would never lie.

If what Sarawak Report wrote is the gospel, as most Pakatuns and those from the ANC (Anti-Najib Campaign) would believe, that would mean the three Tan Sri did no wrong. No doubt they did go to the United States to pass information and documents to the US government, as what Abu Kassim confessed. But this was not an act of espionage or treason. They went to the US to give the US government information with the full blessing and command of His Majesty the Agong.

The question that now needs to be answered is did His Majesty the Agong command or titah the three Tan Sri to oust the Prime Minister? That is what the majority of Malaysians now believe since thus far this has never been denied by Istana Negara. And if His Majesty the Agong did command or titah the three Tan Sri to oust the Prime Minister does this mean Malaysians agree that the Agong or even the Conferences of Rulers (which means all nine state Rulers) should jump into politics?

As a royalist I, of course, agree that the Rulers (the Agong and the nine state Rulers making up the Conference of Rulers) be given back some of their veto powers that were taken away by Mahathir 25 years ago. After all, the Monarchy, just like the Judiciary and the Legislature, is one of the four branches of government that offer one another checks and balances (so that the Executive, the fourth branch, does not rule like a dictator).

More importantly would be that laws would not be able to be bulldozed through Parliament like what it used to be up to 25 years ago — until Mahathir passed the law that Bills no longer require the Agong’s signature to become law.

Anyway, the issue here is did His Majesty the Agong command the three Tan Sri to oust the Prime Minister like what Sarawak Report revealed? Sarawak Report would not dare write that unless it is true. And that means either Mahathir or Abu Kassim through his agent, Rashpal Singh A/L Jeswant Singh, must have informed Sarawak Report about this command or titah from the Agong.

Did Rashpal Singh A/L Jeswant Singh inform Clare Rewcastle Brown that His Majesty the Agong is behind the plot to oust Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak and commanded the three Tan Sri to go the US to pass the US government classified information and documents?

The three Tan Sri can easily clear this up by showing Malaysians the letter of command or surat-titah(sometimes referred to as ‘surat kuning’ or ‘yellow letter’) that the Agong gave them. In the event Istana Negara issues an official statement denying that the Agong had titah the three Tan Sri to oust the Prime Minister, at least they would be covered and the Agong would be revealed to have lied.

Anyway, on another matter, this is what the Malay Mail Online reported today:

Umno vice-president Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein questioned today Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s real motive to amend the Federal Constitution by removing certain powers from the Malay rulers after the latter’s apology last week.

In a blog post last Thursday, the former prime minister apologised to the rulers for the 1993 constitutional amendments that removed a mandatory royal assent needed to gazette legislations passed in Parliament as law.

“Back then, what he briefed us was that he did not want other institutions to undermine our efforts to develop the country and its people,” Hishammuddin told a press conference after officiating the Setiawangsa Umno assembly here.

“But now, with the apology, it makes us wonder if the intention was sincere,” he added.

Umno secretary-general, Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor, in turn, said, “I don’t understand Mahathir. When he did that, he told us to support him. Now when he sees that this is not in his favour, he says he was wrong.”

They were all referring to the anti-Monarchy campaign that Mahathir launched in 1988 so that the Constitutional Monarchy can be reduced to a rubber-stamp Monarchy. That campaign the length and breadth of Malaysia was called SEMARAK and you can read what Robert Stephen Milne and Diane K. Mauzy wrote on page 183 of their book Malaysian Politics Under Mahathir.