Reading between the lines of what veteran journalist Kadir Jasin recently wrote, I cannot help but wonder whether the Tengku Mahkota of Johor (TMJ) may have been advised to leave the country until after the Johor election concludes on July 11.
To be clear, Kadir never explicitly said it was TMJ.
Neither did he write that the individual had been asked to remain outside the country until the state election ends.
Instead, Kadir wrote yesterday (June 30) that he had been informed by several fellow journalists that "a certain well-known member of the Royal Family of a certain state in Tanah Melayu has been advised to take a leave of absence and not to be in the country for a certain period of time."
He then appeared to leave a clue by noting that the person's departure coincided with his birthday.
When I checked the dates, I found that TMJ's birthday falls on June 30.
As for my belief that the period of absence could last until the Johor election concludes, that is entirely my own interpretation.
Two days earlier, on June 29, Kadir had also written that he had received information suggesting that the Johor Palace had taken concrete steps to "separate itself" from the coming Johor election.
Putting those two writings together, I have come to my own conclusion that Kadir may have been referring to TMJ, and that the leave of absence may have been intended to last until the election is over.
Again, let me be quite clear, this is my reading of what was written, not something Kadir explicitly stated.
But if this be the case, why might such advice have been given?
If I were to venture a guess, it could be because His Highness the TMJ, through various public signals and expressions, has appeared to be unusually engaged with the Johor election, to the point that some observers—including myself—have begun wondering whether the Johor Palace itself is becoming part of the political contest.
Among the most prominent figures to raise this issue was former UMNO leader Puad Zarkashi, who openly claimed that Johor UMNO had become a puppet of the Johor Palace before subsequently leaving the party that he has been a member of fore at least 30, or perhaps even 40 years.
If my interpretation is correct, what message would be conveyed by advising the Crown Prince and Regent to temporarily stay away?
To me, the signal would be that the Johor Palace wishes to remain above partisan politics.
Personally, I consider that reassuring.
Malaysia's politics has become increasingly turbulent and chaotic is recent days. Many Malaysians feel that if political instability were ever to spiral out of control, the constitutional monarchy may the only institution in the country that the people can count on to preserve stability.
If the Johor Palace is consciously distancing itself from the electoral contest, it reinforces the notion that the monarchy is very conscious of its role as stabilizing force, and can be counted on by the people to be a neutral arbiter, that will be well positioned to reinstitute order, if our politics were to descend into chaos.
If that is indeed the message being sent, then I am quite it will indeed be very welcome by the people.
Daulat Tuanku.
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