ALOR SETAR, Aug 13 — The Sultan of Kedah, Sultan Sallehuddin Ibni Almarhum Sultan Badlishah, today called for the traditional elements in the Federal Constitution to be left untouched so as to maintain peace and harmony in the country.

These elements included the existence of the institution of the monarchy, the special position of the Malays and Islam as the official religion, he added.

"I have noticed of late a tendency to undermine our unity. The issues of racial nostalgia and sensitivities pertaining to race, religion and beliefs were deliberately raised,” he said when opening the second meeting of the first session of the 14th Kedah Legislative Assembly.

The Ruler said that although this was done on the basis of liberalism, openness and freedom of speech, the constitution must be respected and accorded the priority it deserved.

"There has been a consensus in drawing up the contents of the constitution. The noble agreement is a reflection of the tolerance of the indigenous people towards the other races that has been accepted as a social contract,” he said.

Sultan Sallehuddin also expressed concern over the country’s position in the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) released this year whereby Malaysia dropped seven spots to 62 among 180 countries, the worst position over the last five years.

He said that for a country which had Islam as the official religion, the CPI position was most worrying and should be taken seriously and addressed urgently to prevent Malaysia’s image from being untarnished in the international arena.

"The basic question we have to ask is why this (corruption) is happening? Have we lost our dignity so much so that we stoop to giving and receiving bribes?” he asked.

In the context of Kedah, the Sultan called for a lesser dependence on forest harvesting activities and to seek alternatives, among them eco-tourism and empowerment of the herbal and pharmaceutical industries.

"I hope that the entrusted quarters will play a more active role to ensure that the forest wealth can be enjoyed by all the people and the generations to come,” he said.

The Ruler wanted the people to be guided by the bold spirit of the people of yesteryears who had made the old Kedah a state known and often cited by traders, scholars and world leaders.

"We must be guided by this spirit to drive the people to restore Kedah to glory again.

"I urge the honourable members of the House to be leaders of wisdom who can show the people the greatness of our state and encourage them to become more knowledgeable and competitive in the New Malaysia,” he said.

Earlier, the Sultan inspected a guard-of-honour mounted by several members of the Police Federal Reserve Unit in Cheras, Kuala Lumpur, at the Wisma Darul Aman square.

The Ruler was accompanied by the Sultanah of Kedah, Sultanah Maliha Tengku Ariff. — Bernama