I am amused and at the same time sad that the supposedly intelligent discussions have beed reduced to name calling. Cant we do better than that. No need to insult. Just criticize.

With regards to comment by Karpal on the jurisdiction of Sultan of Perak, I personnally believe that it is rather coarse. Karpal as we all know has a penchant of mocking politicians from the other divide in the august Parliament.

There is a certain decorum that expected to be maintained in the presence of a Sultan. Here lies the blunder by Karpal Singh. He, from the views of vast section of Malays , insulted the Sultan of Perak by implying that the Ruler made a mistake that no former Lord President should ever make.

Different people took it differently. Malays who are fond of monarch system are upset. There is nothing racial about it. And it is wrong to imply that UMNO intentionally whip the sentiment. The sentiment is real. From what I notice, non Malays do not seem to understand the fuss about Karpal said.

They do not understand why such a statement can be construed as seditious. Malays interpret the issue from a different angle. Malays hold royalty with high regards. They are as what Dr Mahathir said in Malay Dillema as the “last vestige of Old Malaya”.

That does not mean that that royalty cant be criticized. Even Prophet Muhammad was criticized no less by Allah and clearly written in Kuran.

My point is that Karpal is seen as insulting the Sultan and the revered institution by Malays. This incident also put PKR and PAS into a delicate situation. Call it immature or childish, but Malay community finds that thir silence as disturbing. Hence, come the remark I overheard ” Macam ni ke jadi Kerajaan. Belum apa-apa lagi dah biarkan Karpal hina Raja-raja”.

As for appointment of Menteri Besar of Trengganu, initially UMNO insisted on Idris as the candidate for the post. And I believe PM is right in this matter. But UMNO was in a difficult position. its insistence on Idris Jusoh was construed as an afront to the Sultan of Trengganu. No Malay politician would want to be seen as rude to the Sultan. That explain why UMNo relented and agreed to the Sultan’s choice.