PUTRAJAYA, Aug 6 —To protect and preserve the trust and respect for the crown, the monarchy should distance itself from politics, said the Sultan of Perak Sultan Nazrin  Muizzuddin Shah.

"The King should remain apolitical, segregating himself from the political cauldron and staying away from becoming an instrument for the benefit of any party,” he told more than 500 participants at the "Memperkukuh Pasak Negara” (Strengthening National Pillar) convention at a hotel here yesterday.

"The King will only be involved during situations and time of need.”

The two-day convention is aimed at informing participants on the formation of the constitutional monarchy and its responsibilities.

Sultan Nazrin said the Federal Constitution is the highest law of the land and respecting it is not at option but a must to ensure a democratic system is implemented.

Based on the doctrine of constitutional monarchy or parliamentary democracy, the role of the King should be in accordance with the Constitution.

"The King fills a symbolic and functional constitutional need. As head of the country, he acts as a stabilising force, a source of justice, the core of unity, a means to consolidate, thus increasing the trust of the rakyat on the system of government based on democratic practices and segregation of power,” he said.

Sultan Nazrin said the royal institutions are in the right position to ensure the welfare of the people.

"If the people were hit with a ‘wave of power struggle, which is eroding national unity’, the King and the Malay Rulers are in a position to protect the interests of the people,” he said.

He said the Rulers have a responsibility to ensure the spirit of the Constitution, the philosophy behind every enacted law, and the greater importance of the country and its citizens are protected.

Sultan Nazrin said it is the responsibility of the King to observe, monitor and advise the administrators in governing the country, "so that they can carry out their duty to govern the country in a transparent, honest and trustworthy manner”.

The King’s decree is not merely to complement the customs, the royal state of the sultanate, or the symbol for performing solemn tasks, he said.

"The King is not a rigid monument, without life, without soul. Rulers are not blind, hearing impaired or unable to speak. Everything that happens is in the vision and hearing of the King,” he said.

Also present were chairman of the Ummah Unity Consultative Panel of the National Dakwah Council Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Abdul Rahman, and Perak Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Zambry Abd Kadir.