King’s royal address reflects firmness in safeguarding political stability — Analyst

KUALA LUMPUR: The King’s inaugural royal address when opening the First Meeting of the Third Session of the 15th Parliament Monday has been described as the beginning of a new episode of His Majesty’s firmness in safeguarding the interests of the people and ensuring the continued political stability of the nation.

Security and political analyst at the Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) Centre For Media and Information Warfare Studies (CMIWS), Dr. Noor Nirwandy Mat Noordin, said His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim’s address indicates his desire for political stability as the foundation for national security.

“The ‘people-centric’ approach by His Majesty is something wanted by the people nowadays so that they feel assured in the socio-economic context, and no longer have to face the endless political disputes in the country,” Noor Nirwandy told Bernama Monday.

According to him, Sultan Ibrahim wants all members of parliament to play a key role in shaping the nation and to become a formidable force in the country’s administration for the benefit of society.

Meanwhile, founder and director of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia’s Institute of Ethnic Studies (KITA) Distinguished Prof Datuk Dr Shamsul Amri Baharuddin said His Majesty’s decree calling on the government to formulate policies to strengthen harmony and unity among the people should be given attention.

“In my opinion, it is the government’s responsibility to further explain what has been stated by the King in the address. What His Majesty has done is to remind us of things that already exist but haven’t reached the desired level,” he said.

He said although the government continues to implement various initiatives to strengthen unity among the people, there are still weaknesses at the grassroots level, especially in promoting the national language in vernacular, national and private schools.

Shamsul Amri proposed that the use of the national language be expanded for every subject in all schools.

According to him, if only one subject is taught in the national language, it will not be sufficient to enable students from other ethnicities to excel in that language when attending vernacular and international schools.