Hadi Will Get Away With Defying Terengganu Sultan

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“I will keep giving my sermons as usual in suraus and mosques. We have to understand ... when we talk about Islam, we cannot separate politics from religion.”
– PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang
This is PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang’s game plan. It really does not matter if Perikatan Nasional is on board or not because Bersatu and whoever else in the coalition are irrelevant.
This is about Hadi’s vision for a theocratic state. Now when most people think of a theocratic state, they think of the supremacy of religion.
True but a theocratic state is also one where ethnic divisions and inter-religious schisms are used by the religious party in power to sustain hegemony.
Now what Hadi and PAS are doing is slowly whittling away at the last R of the three Rs (race, religion and royalty).
Umno used to believe that it was the guardian of these “tiang seri” (sacred pillars) but with its downfall, disparate figures like Annuar Musa before the last general election were hoping a hook-up with PAS would ensure the “tiang seri” endured, citing the below:
"Strategi musuh adalah untuk melihat politik Melayu lemah. Ia lemah bila orang Melayu berpecah.
"Perpaduan Melayu menjadi teras kekuatan Umno selama ini. Sejak penubuhannya pada 1946, Umno adalah tonggak perpaduan orang Melayu yang paling utama.
"Umno tidak harus terjun dalam PRU tanpa menyempurnakan penyatuan Melayu, apa lagi cuba bergerak solo dalam situasi politik yang sudah banyak berubah."
(The enemy’s strategy is to see Malay politics become fragmented. It weakens when Malays are disunited. Malay unity is the bedrock of Umno for all these years. Since its establishment in 1946, Umno has been the main pillar of Malay unity. Hence, Umno should not enter the general election without uniting the Malays first…what more contesting on its own in a political situation that has changed drastically)
Theocrats around the world do not share power in the conventional sense. They allow certain legacy institutions to endure so long as those institutions give credibility and legitimacy to the religious party in control.
For decades, the royal institutions acted as a kind of counterbalance – albeit in an imperfect manner – to the excesses of political power.
Former prime minister (twice) Dr Mahathir Mohamad curtailed the powers of the royalty and if you care to remember, used the propaganda instruments of the state to make his case.
Former prime minister Dr Mahathir MohamadThose were the days before social media, so the narrative was very much controlled by the state.
Hadi and PAS, by openly defying the sultan of Terengganu’s edict that religious political operatives should stay out of mosques, are signalling to the faithful that these are the first few perilous steps that they need to take, to turn this country into a theocratic paradise.
Keep in mind that religious extremists have always threatened the traditional institutions of power in various Muslim-majority countries.
During the campaign stump, Hadi made it very clear that he wanted to hook up with Umno so, with a strong majority, they could redefine the electoral boundaries in this country to remain in power forever.
This is why the old maverick is clutching his pearls fearing that Pakatan Harapan would actually have the cajones to make the electoral playing field more equitable - thereby enabling a plurality of voices to be the foundation of the democratic processes in this country.
By defying the royalty, who made this unity government possible, Hadi is letting the faithful know, that just as this unity government does not have to be followed but also diktats from the royal institution.
By shielding himself with religion, Hadi is making the overt claim that he and PAS, and not the royal institutions, are the keepers of the faith in this country.
Redefining authority
This is an important step in defining the authority of Hadi and PAS when it comes to religion in this country.
Why do you think that Terengganu’s sultan decided to make this political play? The answer is simple. The legacy institutions of power in this country understand that they are vulnerable to the political and religious malfeasance of religious political parties.
When Hadi says that Islam and politics cannot be separated, he is absolutely right.
The problem for legacy institutions is that Hadi is also saying that it is he and PAS who will decide which political institution needs to be followed and in case you are wondering, the only political institution that Hadi believes needs to be followed is PAS.
Remember how the royal institutions were the apogee of Malayness and we were told that Harapan, especially the DAP, was always attempting to defy this institution?
Well, Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin, the desperado after the last general election, also ignored a royal plea for a unity government.
What this did was normalise the rejection of royal advice in the PN base. Muhyiddin was telling the PN base that no matter what the royal institution advises, the feelings of the base take precedence.
Bersatu president Muhyiddin YassinThis was the first sign that PN led by PAS were willing to slay Malay sacred cows to assume power. Mind you, coming from Umno and a one-time acolyte of the old maverick, thumbing one's nose at the royal institution was not unheard of.
Openly disagreeing with the Selangor sultan and calling for state theocratic rebellion against the ruler, when it came to the Bon Odori festival, was a way of flexing PAS' muscles.
The fact that there has been no sanction from the royal institution is indicative of the growing power of this theocratic party. All this did was embolden PAS because they knew that in this political terrain, they were untouchable.
And Hadi will get away with this provocation even if it is against the royal institution.
Hadi uses his religion which is the religion of the state, so, anyone attempting to charge him is in reality opening up the mainstream interpretation of Islam for investigation.
And this is the key. People make the mistake of thinking that Hadi is just pulling this nonsense out of his posterior. He is not.
Hadi, like most theocrats in waiting, understands that they need to reshape the political landscape so it will be malleable to their religious indoctrination.
No sacred cows
Sacred cows need to be slayed by religious scholars because this will demonstrate not only the superiority of religion but also the faith of religious leaders.
Does anyone really think that Hadi takes Saudara Anwar’s rejoinder not to defy the royalty seriously?
As far as Hadi is concerned, he is the true keeper of the faith in this country. He and PAS are the only ones who will be able to lead the masses safely to the end times.
Hadi believes in one God and one country - provided that God and country believe in him. - Mkini
S THAYAPARAN is Commander (Rtd) of the Royal Malaysian Navy. Fīat jūstitia ruat cælum - “Let justice be done though the heavens fall.”
The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT.

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