AN opposition MP who once served as a senior Army officer has criticised the culture of 'kissing' ministers' hands among the top leadership of the Malaysian Armed Forces (ATM), which he said needs to be stopped.
Datuk Khlir Mohd Nor (PN-Ketereh) made the remarks when asking a supplementary question to Deputy Defence Minister Adly Zahari during an oral question-and-answer session at the Dewan Rakyat today.
He was referring to a video on the appointment ceremony of the 24th Chief of Defence Forces, General Datuk Malek Razak Sulaiman, which took place on February 3.
Defence Minister, Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin, officiated the ceremony.
"I want to reprimand MINDEF (Ministry of Defence) regarding the culture of kissing ministers' hands, please stop.
"I saw it going viral right now, General kissing the minister's hand, what is this?
"This cannot be, kissing our parents' hand is, it's okay, kissing the Minister of Defence's hand, this is not right. I hope MINDEF corrects this," he said as reported by Berita Harian.
However, Adly, who is also the Alor Gajah MP, in his response, only replied: "The second question does not need to be answered, it may be a reminder to all of us".
Meanwhile, a government MP, Aminolhuda Hassan (PH-Sri Gading), when asking a supplementary question, also gave his opinion on the issue.
"Whether or not to kiss hands is up to the individual. When it is mentioned in this Parliament … it's a pity," he said.
A photo featuring Malek Razak shaking hands with Khaled Nordin had earlier sparked backlash online after he was seen bowing his head towards Khaled. – February 5, 2026
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