Its chairman, Salim Bashir, said this is because the subject is of public interest.
“We will be writing to the court to seek permission to be made an amicus curiae,” he said, adding that the council will appoint a lawyer to act on the matter.
FMT understands that the council will likely take a stand on principles based on the rule of law after having read the originating summons and affidavit filed by lawyer Syed Iskandar Syed Jaafar al-Mahdzar last month.
The amicus curiae status, however, only allows a party to make a submission at the invitation of the court.
The Muslim Lawyers Association, the Centre For A Better Tomorrow, and lawyers Mohd Khairul Azam Abdul Aziz, Malcolm Fernandez and Nazirah Abdul Rahim have also applied to become parties to the action.
Judge Mariana Yahya will hear the arguments on Feb 16 and also conduct case management for Syed Iskandar’s originating summons.
The potential interveners want to be part of the hearing of the originating summons on grounds it is their constitutional right to be made parties, they have genuine interest to intervene, and because of natural justice.
The lawyers said they have a legal interest and a higher right compared with ordinary members of the public to intervene.
Syed Iskandar posed two legal questions in his legal action filed on Oct 30:
- Whether on a true construction of Articles 40 and 150 of the Federal Constitution, the King has an unfettered discretion not to declare an emergency despite the advice of the prime minister or the Cabinet; and
- Whether an amendment to Article 150, by adding clauses (8) and (9), breached the basic structure of the constitution.
In an affidavit to support the action, he said the King, in not accepting the advice of Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin or his Cabinet, did not perform his function in accordance with Articles 40 and 150.
On Oct 23, Muhyiddin advised the King to issue an emergency proclamation under Article 150 after the Cabinet agreed on the matter at a special meeting.
Two days later, after a special meeting of the Malay rulers, the King decreed that an emergency proclamation in the entire, or part of, the country was not necessary.
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