Negri Sembilan exco crisis must not open door to arbitrary revocations, says expert
PETALING JAYA: The attorney-general’s validation of the Negeri Sembilan Ruler’s revocation of the posts of 10 state executive councillors should not be viewed as a precedent for Rulers or governors in other states to revoke exco appointments at will, said constitutional law expert Dr Abdul Aziz Bari.
He said the state is facing an exceptional constitutional crisis in which the normal constitutional machinery has effectively become paralysed.
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“This incident cannot be a precedent for the future,” he told theSun.
“It happened in a crisis in which ordinary rules were quite difficult to apply.”
Aziz said allowing the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, Rulers or Yang di-Pertua Negeri to revoke executive appointments at will would undermine the principle of a responsible government under the Westminster system.
He said he had stated in his 1995 PhD thesis that a king, president, governor or similar head of state could dismiss a prime minister if the latter undermines the Constitution.
“That’s the theory, as the sovereign is the ultimate guardian of the Constitution.
“Thus, sacking the exco is nothing compared with this, and the condition precedent to such extraordinary action is to protect the Constitution or the constitutional order,” he said, adding that such a situation is “not something that can happen every day”.
Aziz said the constitutional crisis could also be viewed as a public order issue, providing justification for federal action.
He said the emergency provisions in the Federal Constitution were originally intended to equip the federal government with powers to deal with crises and if they are used in Negeri Sembilan, they could be limited by their scope and duration.
“Such limits could be worked out by the Attorney-General’s Chambers in consultation with the Cabinet,” he said, adding that it would ultimately require political courage from the federal government.
On Sept 26, Attorney-General Tan Sri Mohd Dusuki Mokhtar said the revocation of the 10 exco appointments by Yang di-Pertuan Besar Tuanku Muhriz Tuanku Munawir was valid under Article 38(5) of the Negeri Sembilan Constitution.
Dusuki said the provision states that an exco member, other than the menteri besar, holds office at the pleasure of the Yang di-Pertuan Besar. The revocation took effect on Sept 20 and was subsequently gazetted.
The gazette stated that the appointments had been revoked and annulled after the exco members were found to have violated their pledge of allegiance to the Yang di-Pertuan Besar.
Former Malaysian Bar president Salim Bashir Bhaskaran described the issue as a “full-blown constitutional crisis”, adding that the situation had escalated after Menteri Besar Datuk Ismail Lasim maintained that the revoked exco members would continue to function.
“Negeri Sembilan has a unique constitutional structure that may not be comparable with other states.
“We have to examine each state’s constitution to determine the similarities and differences, particularly as Negeri Sembilan’s constitutional framework is intertwined with customary law, or adat.
“A literal reading of Article 38(5) of the Negeri Sembilan Constitution provides that a member of the Executive Council, other than the menteri besar, shall hold office at the Ruler’s pleasure.
“The cascading legal issues arise from the wording ‘Ruler’s pleasure’, which may or may not be similarly provided for in the constitutions of other states,” he said, adding that Selangor has similar provisions.
Since the revocation of the Negeri Sembilan exco members, there have been calls on social media for the removal of Selangor exco members, which Aziz described as “nonsensical”
