KUALA LUMPUR – Amid the ongoing political power struggle, Johor ruler Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar posted a Facebook message appearing to take a subtle dig at those fighting for top positions.
In a post this morning, Sultan Ibrahim uploaded an image of a quote from the Prophet Muhammad reading: “Sesungguhnya kalian akan bersungguh-sungguh menginginkan jawatan, sedangkan jawatan itu akan menjadi sesalan pada hari Kiamat (jika tidak dijalankan dengan baik).”
This translates to: “Indeed, you will earnestly want a position, when that position will be a regret come judgement day (if not carried out properly).”
In just three hours, the post received more than 8,000 reactions and was shared more than 800 times.
While Sultan Ibrahim did not mention any names, this comes in light of a political impasse over the legitimacy of the Perikatan Nasional government led by Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.
The prime minister’s position has been the subject of heavy scrutiny in recent days after Umno officially withdrew its support for him and his administration on Tuesday.
Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, in announcing this, had said that he has enough statutory declarations from party MPs to see the PN government’s collapse, adding that a letter has been sent to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong informing the ruler of this.
On Wednesday, Muhyiddin, flanked by a number of his cabinet members, announced in a live telecast that he still enjoys majority support in Parliament, and said he is ready to put this to test in the next sitting in September.
The current political struggle was triggered by an announcement made by the government in the Dewan Rakyat on July 26 that all emergency ordinances have been revoked about a week earlier.
This resulted in the Istana Negara issuing a royal rebuke, with the Agong reprimanding the government for going against his decree for the ordinances to be tabled and debated in the House.
The Prime Minister’s Office responded saying the Agong has been duly advised on the matter and that the constitution provides that His Majesty act in accordance with the advice of the cabinet.
The ensuing chaos forced the suspension of the ongoing Dewan Rakyat and Dewan Negara special sittings, with critics accusing the prime minister of committing treason against the king and for supposedly being afraid of putting his majority to test. – The Vibes, August 6, 2021
