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Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Is it that confusing about The Federal Constitution of Malaysia

I must admit that I did not read the Federal Constitution other than when certain articles were argued in court or in public domain such as blogs, MSM and online news. This posting is not to challenge the Constitution, argue about it or trying to be smart interpreting any section or part of it.

My concern is rather why are there so many interpretations of certain articles, sections or part of it from different groups of the public, institutions as well as the government who is supposed to be guided by the Federal Constitution.

The Federal Constitution is written in English and I suppose it is now also introduce in other languages but should there be any ambiguity over any interpretation the English version will take precedent.

In order to avoid any kind of misinterpretation be it to serve any individual or party agenda and create any further confusion, the Government and if possible the Agong should order forming a commission and bring to live the true and correct version of the Federal Constitution.

This commission is not to make changes or amend the Federal Constitution but solely to make it clear once and for all how the Federal Constitution should be read and apply.

There is an ongoing campaign by Constitutional Law Committee formed under the aegis of the Bar Council, Malaysia.

The Committee was formed to address and promote understanding of the Malaysian Federal Constitution and the concept of constitutionalism.
What is the MyConstitution Campaign?

A first-of-its-kind national campaign to educate the Malaysian public and create greater awareness about the Constitution. The MyConstitution Campaign is guided by the following observations:

The Constitution covers almost every aspect of Malaysian life, from the simple right to freedom of movement to the right to elected government.

The Constitution is the primary document that defines us as a nation and preserves the central pillars of democratic governance.

Every Malaysian is a beneficiary of its promise of constitutionalism and of democratic governance, and therefore all Malaysians must be armed with knowledge and understanding of the Constitution.

This is a very good initiative by the Bar Council and we are grateful for what they are doing but as I said above there are still certain groups who are acting dumb as to the actual meaning or application of the Constitution for reasons well known by all.

There are a few articles, sub-sections and parts of the Constitution that always got the attention of certain groups who will argue how it is interpreted and the Government which are supposed to understand (or not) fully the Federal Constitution tends to let these groups have their way. This is very dangerous to the nation as these conflict of interpretation are related to race and religion.

That is why I suggest that a commission formed to look into these few articles, sub-sections and parts of the Constitution and clarify how they are supposed to be.

There are calls to introduce The Federal Constitution in schools but before that the critical and mostly misunderstood articles, sub-sections and parts of the Constitution must be clearly defined or else teachers will provide their own interpretation.

Lastly, should there be a ruling that all Prime Ministers, Deputy PMs and Ministers fully understand and be clear about the Federal Constitution before they are appointed?

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