The proposal was made by Abdul Aziz Abdul Rahman, chairman of the Panel of Consultants for Ummah Unity, National Dakwah Council.

He said currently there was no specific advisory body for both these institutions that were the backbone of the country.

“There should be a body that can advise the rulers so that they can fully exercise their powers,” he said at a dialogue session in conjunction with the “Strengthening national pillars: Towards a more tangible will” convention here today.

At the state level, Aziz said the religious council’s function, which now focuses only on religion, should also be divided into two, namely the religious affairs and socio-economic affairs of the Muslims.

He said based on his study, the role of the ruler as the state’s Islamic religious leader should also be divided into two and not focus on religion alone.

Meanwhile, in a proceedings paper titled “Malaysian Constitution: Role and jurisdiction of the rulers”, he said the power and highest roles held by the rulers, as enshrined in the Federal Constitution and states as well as the national legislation, was not understood by the people.

“As there are not many activities portraying the rulers or situations in which they wield their powers, the people have no chance to observe or be concerned about this.”

Hence, Aziz said the situation needs to be changed immediately to restore the glory of the rulers as the country had achieved independence for nearly 60 years.