The King said: Rights enshrined in the Constitution should not be questioned or politicised.
Tuanku Mizan also urged non-government organizations (NGOs), in the course of carrying out of their activities and programmes, to refrain from touching on the sensitivities and issues which could jeopardise public harmony and countary’s image.
In the words of Iain McLean, constitution is ‘the set of fundamental rules governing the politics of a nation or subnational body.
The word was first used in this sense after the ‘Glorious Revolution’ of 1688 in Britain, when the deposed king, James II, was accused of having violated the ‘fundamental constitution of the kingdom’.
The rule of law is recognized as one of the very important characteristics of the Malaysian Constitution. Every action of the government must be authorized by law, passed by Parliament.
According to A.C. Kapur : “The ‘rule of law’ is the product of centuries of struggle of the people for the recognition of their inherent rights”.
His Majesty said the sovereignty of the Malay Rulers, position of Islam as the religion of the federation, special position of the Malays and natives of Sabah and Sarawak, and the legitimate rights of the other races encompassing citizenship and fundamental rights, as enshrined in the Federal Constitution, should not be questioned so as to avert disunity.
Tuanku Mizan urged the people to always maintain harmony and preserve the country’s dignity, saying they should be good, responsible citizens, and not be easily influenced by slander and accucations made by irresponsible parties.
Slander is the defamation in the form of spoken statement while libel in the form of published or written statements.
According to Cutlip & Center (1994:187), in order for a statement to be considered legally libelous, the statement must ‘hurt someone’s reputation : be defamatory’.
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