Socializing the Constitution: Malaysian National Agenda

Of late, various constitutional issues come to the surface and become the subject of debate among the society members be it in the social media or in the printed or electronic media. Issues like the position of Malay Kings, the special rights of Malays, Islam and Malay Language are often debated. This debate is something that sparks an interest because the public begins to pay attention to the content of the constitution. Although sometimes the debate does not truly convey the actual meaning of constitution, the public is beginning to like talking about the constitution that, all this while, is difficult to grasp and which appears to only be understood by lawyers or those reading law only. Thus, it is advisable to start socialising the constitution. The concept of socialising the constitution means that the community has to be exposed with the constitution not only from the legislative aspect alone but also from the historical, cultural, religious, political and ethnic relations aspects. This is stated by the Reid Commission Report that stresses on how important it is for the constitution to take into account the factors of history, tradition, economy and social that existed in 1957.