Kedah Sultan urges govt to review structure of Syariah Courts

ALOR SETAR: The Sultan of Kedah Al-Aminul Karim Sultan Sallehuddin Sultan Badlishah has urged the government to review the structure of Syariah Courts, such as its hierarchical system to provide more space for justice to the relevant parties.

His Highness also called on the government to improve the position of Syariah Court judges to be on par with the system used in the Civil Courts.

“Syariah Courts is the torch of justice for Islam, which is the official religion of this state. Therefore, I want the Syariah Courts to become a significant institution commensurate with the position of Islam in this state.

“As an enhancement measure, the establishment of the Syariah Courts should be enshrined in the Laws of the Constitution of Kedah, just as the Civil Courts are mentioned in the Federal Constitution,” he said during the opening of the Kedah State Legislative Assembly sitting here today.

Meanwhile, Sultan Sallehuddin wants the state government to cooperate with the federal government to restructure the padi production and market ecosystem to provide a fair return to farmers rather than only benefitting downstream players.

According to the ruler, the fate of farmers, the real ‘powerhouse’ of the rice farming sector, should be given serious attention because of their meagre income.

“Without expanding the existing rice fields, the state government needs to consider appropriate measures to increase rice productivity in the state. The obvious solution is the use of technology,” His Highness said while urging for technology empowerment at all stages of the rice production chain.

Sultan Sallehuddin also said that the government must collaborate with the private sector to provide high-quality agricultural technology services at affordable prices. -Bernama