MPN noted that the social contract concept was “indirectly implied” and not written directly in the Reid Commission Report 1957, which is an important part of the Federal Constitution.

“Zainal Kling’s speech was to remind the attendees, who comprised mainly Malays, the need to understand and not forget Malay history, the sovereignty of the Malay rulers on Tanah Melayu, the Malay language’s official standing in Malaysia, the special position of the Malays, and so forth,” it said in a statement.

“All these are historical facts and have always been his (Zainal’s) lecture material as the keeper of the Kursi Raja-Raja Melayu at UiTM.”

The statement said that the speech by Zainal, the chief organiser of the congress, did not contain any inflammatory elements that could spark public unrest.

“MPN is of the view that only those that do not understand the historical facts of Malays in Tanah Melayu, including the history of the Malay rulers, and those who (ignore) the Federal Constitution, are the ones that are hurt by Zainal Kling’s speech,” it said.

Following Zainal’s speech, a member of the Penang Society for Tamil Advancement, Yoganathan Loganathan, lodged a police report, saying the words could spark racial unrest in Malaysia’s multi-cultural society.

To this, MPN said Yoganathan did not understand the ‘social contract that was an important component of the Federal Constitution and the concept of Malaysia’s multiracial society

“Hence, the police do not need to take heed of Yoganathan’s report,” the statement said.