So Now, Can A Civil Servant 'Dato Bandar' Overrule The Federal Court And The Constitution?

 Just a few days ago we read this news report in The Star :

The Dato Bandar of Ipoh who is NOT ELECTED and is just a Civil Servant wants to make Manjoi (in Ipoh) a syariah compliant area. What exactly does that mean? Folks, your guess is as good as mine. 

In Malaysia, since syariah is usually associated with 'tak boleh' - ini tak boleh, itu tak boleh, ini haram, itu haram, this planned syariah compliant zone  will most likely place restrictions on any business or public activity which THEY deem as NOT syariah compliant.

For certainty no selling of liquor, no female barbers cutting hair of males, or vice versa, no unisex hair salons, maybe no male-female gyms, maybe no dogs in public places, no males/females in public swimming pools, maybe no cinemas (like Shah Alam), no this and no that. Just no, no, no, no. I think the list could be longer.

And when something is deemed as NOT syariah compliant there must be policing and enforcement powers by the State authority to uphold the syariah compliance. You cannot administer even a city without some policing and enforcement powers. 

Just a few days ago - in that land mark judgement by the Federal Court - the news reported : 

Federal Court’s nine-judge panel unanimously declared on February 25 that a Selangor state law’s provision (for one shariah offence) was invalid and against the Federal Constitution, as such offences fall under Parliament’s powers to make laws and not under state legislatures’ law-making powers.

The court had granted a declaration . . .on grounds that it made provision with respect to a matter that the Selangor state legislature was not empowered to make laws and was therefore null and void. 

Basically the Federal Court was making the point that ALL State authority to legislate criminal enactments is subject to the supremacy of the Federal Constitution as it shall be interpreted by the Federal Court. That is what it really means.

The Federal Court said this would include situations where the Parliament has NOT YET passed a Federal law relating to the matter at hand. For example if State A passes a criminal enactment (under Syariah) which DOES NOT have an equivalent law under the Civil Laws passed by Parliament it does NOT mean that the State enactment is outside the purview of the Federal Constituion. And the final grand arbiter of the Federal Constitution shall be the Federal Court.

So now going back to Manjoi in Ipoh. Lets cook up an example. Say the Dato Bandar of Ipoh, who is a 46 year old un-elected Civil Servant, and the City Council of Ipoh impose a syariah compliant zone in Manjoi, and then lo and behold, Salon Rambut XYZ's 

• non-Muslim female hairstylist gives a haircut to a Muslim male client 
• Muslim male hairstylist gives a haircut to a Muslim female client
• Muslim female hairstylist gives a haircut to a non-Muslim male client
• Muslim male hairstylist gives a haircut to a non Muslim female client
• etc etc

which (katakan-lah) is somehow in breech of the syariah compliant zone. 

Ini contoh saja ok. So lets say some punitive action for "non-compliance with the syariah zone" is carried out and the license of the hair salon is cancelled. That is certainly a punitive action. It is not criminal punishment but n'theless it is a punitive action.

So where does this place the Federal Constitution? Where does it place the fundamental rights of the citizenry to go about investing their money and running their businesses? It is not a crime to earn a living by giving a haircut (as an example).

Now lets venture a little bit further. Lets say a Chinese chicken rice shop within Manjoi serves beer with their spicy chicken rice. Then the syariah compliance says 'tak boleh'. No license for serving beer even in non-Muslim owned restaurants. So where does that place the fundamental rights (not of the citizens, who cares about the citizens) of the Federal Constituion?

Federal list, State list bla bla bla, fine. But where does it state in the Federal Constitution that the Federal Constitution has abdicated its  DUTY, its RESPONSIBILITY and its OBLIGATION to safeguard the rights of ALL citizens, no matter what their religion is,  to pursue wealth and happiness? 

Even if any type of business license application is NOT APPROVED on grounds of syariah non-compliance then that is already a PUNITIVE action. 

So what does the Federal Constitution have to say about that? Does the Federal Constitution abdicate its supremacy? 

Now we come to the greatest mystery of all. What exactly is the meaning of syariah compliance? 

There is no written down, full list of rules of syariah compliance anywhere in the history of Islam for the past 1400 years.  There is no such thing.

They just make it up as they go along.

SUPER DUPER EXAMPLE NO 1 - In a neighbouring "Islamic" country they passed among the strictest shariah laws.  However their version of syariah laws said that the ruling royal family was exempt from their syariah laws !!  They just make it up.

So a 46 year old Civil Servant, un-elected mayor of Ipoh, can make a sweeping statement that Manjoi shall be syariah compliant without knowing that there is no such thing as a fully written down and acknowledged 'rules of syariah compliance'.

Akhir kalam, tuan-tuan dengar baik-baik ya. 

Pemimpin politik, ahli politik, pentadbir negeri dsbnya semuanya sudah mati akal. Mereka sudah tidak tahu nak buat apa untuk majukan negara, majukan kebaikan semua rakyat negara tanpa kira agama, bangsa dan bahasa. Sebaliknya mereka balik-balik mainkan isu remeh perkauman, isu agama, isu bahasa dan bangsa saja. Itu saja yang ada dalam kepala otak mereka. Cerita lain tak ada.

Tuan-tuan sekarang negara, masyarakat dan ekonomi kita sudah masuki Twilight Zone. Bukan "syariah compliance zone".   

Dalam zaman Twilight Zone ini, kerja tak ada. Anak muda menganggur dengan tiada "light at the end of the tunnel" bagi mereka. 

Kalau keadaan ini berlanjutan untuk beberapa tahun, saya buat prediction akan berlaku bantahan awam (public protest) dan rusuhan bakal berlaku. 

Bukan rusuhan kaum atau agama (walaupun terdapat juga oportunis yang sedang cuba ambil kesempatan isu agama dan perkauman) tetapi rusuhan antara orang yang jadi kaya daripada makan duit rakyat dan orang yang menghadapi kesusahan untuk memberi makan tiga kali sehari bagi anak keluarga mereka. 

Jadi janganlah membuang masa dengan syariah zone lah, enakmen jenayah syariah lah dan entah apa lagi. Jangan membuang masa.

Undang-undang negara kita sudah cukup cantik. Sudah mempunyai cukup nilai "Islamic". 

Had laju di jalanraya 110 km/jam. Cukup cantik. Islamic.  Pasal apa nak bawa kereta dengan laju 200 km? Bodoh kah?

Sistem bekalan letrik dalam negara kita ikut 240 Volts. Cukup cantik. Sudah Islamic. Kita petik switch 'ON' saja TV di rumah boleh hidup. Boleh dengar ceramah TV Hijrah. 

Kita ambil smart phone, buka talian perbankan online dan terus boleh masukkan duit belanja dalam akaun anak kita yang belajar di kampus di Sabah atau di Perlis. Cukup cantik. Sudah Islamic. 

Semua bahagian kehidupan harian kita ini boleh bertahan dan masih berguna sebab dalam negara kita sudah pun ada undang-undang, syarat dan peraturan yang telah wujud sejak sebelum zaman Merdeka dan sebelum zaman Jepun lagi. 

Omputih kata 'if it is not broken dont try to fix it'.  Maksudnya kalau benda itu sudah lama dah ok, memang sudah berfungsi dengan berguna bagi kita, habis pasal apa pula hangpa gatal-gatal nak pi "repair" sistem yang bukan rosak?  Jangan jadi tikus membaiki labu (just because tikus tak ada kerja lain).

Jadi inilah pertembungan atau persaingan yang sedang berlaku antara Federal Constitution kita (di mana Mahkamah Persekutuan atau Federal Court adalah pakar rujuknya) dan sistem-sistem lain entah apa punya asal-usul yang cuba "memperbaiki" sistem baik dan proven yang sedia ada dalam negara kita.

Tikus yang tak ada kerja lain sedang mencari labu untu membaikinya. Maka kepakaran yang lebih perlu sekarang ialah kepakaran menjerat tikus.  Atau pun kepakaran racun tikus.   

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.