Abdul Aziz Bari

Abdul Aziz Bari
Born	(1959-08-22) August 22, 1959 Sabak Bernam, Malaysia
Occupation(s)	Academic, lecturer, professor, politician
Years active	2013–present
Known for	Member of the Perak State Legislative Assembly for Tebing Tinggi since 2018; former State Leader of the Opposition in Perak (2020–2022); former Perak State Executive Council member (2018–2020)

Abdul Aziz Bari (born 22 August 1959) is a Malaysian academic, lecturer, professor, and politician currently serving as the Member of the Perak State Legislative Assembly (MLA) for Tebing Tinggi since May 2018. He held the position of State Leader of the Opposition in Perak from May 2020 until November 2022. Previously, he was a member of the Perak State Executive Council (EXCO) under the Pakatan Harapan (PH) government led by former Menteri Besar Ahmad Faizal Azumu, serving from May 2018 until the PH administration's collapse in March 2020. Abdul Aziz occupies the role of State Vice Chairman of Perak for the Democratic Action Party (DAP), a component party within PH, and was formerly affiliated with the People's Justice Party (PKR), which was part of the earlier Pakatan Rakyat (PR) coalition.

Background

Born in Sabak Bernam, Abdul Aziz currently resides in Bandar Baru Selayang, located in Selangor.

Professional career

Abdul Aziz has an extensive background as a law lecturer, having taught at both the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) and the University of Selangor (UNISEL), with his expertise focusing on constitutional law and the Malaysian monarchy. During his time at IIUM, he faced suspension due to remarks related to the Selangor Sultanate, connected to a dispute involving religious authorities and a Methodist church. While at UNISEL, he was also subject to investigation for comments concerning the Sultan of Selangor’s authority in appointing the state's Chief Minister.

Politics

Aziz made his electoral debut in the 2013 general election as a candidate representing the PKR for the Sabak Bernam parliamentary seat but was narrowly defeated by a margin of 1,644 votes. In 2015, he shifted allegiance to the DAP. In the 2018 general election, he secured victory in Perak’s Tebing Tinggi state assembly seat by overcoming contenders from MCA and PAS with a majority of 3,927 votes. He successfully defended this seat in the 2022 Perak state election, although his majority diminished to 660 votes.

Within the PH state government, Aziz held the EXCO portfolio overseeing Education, Environment, Green Technology & Information until PH’s administration ended amid the political upheaval in 2020. On 9 May 2020, he assumed the role of Perak Opposition Leader but stepped down following PH’s return to power after the 2022 state election. His successor as opposition leader became Razman Zakaria from Perikatan Nasional (PN), which emerged as the opposition bloc after BN and PH formed a coalition government in Perak.

Views and observations

Renowned for his legal knowledge, Aziz frequently expresses personal viewpoints that sometimes conflict with religious organizations and leaders. Ahead of GE14, he openly stated that PAS should not aim to govern. In 2015, he called for an investigation into Johor’s Crown Prince, Tunku Ismail Idris, on allegations of sedition after a social media post about Johor’s potential secession from Malaysia.

His most prominent dispute occurred in 2011 when he criticized the Sultan of Selangor’s endorsement of a raid on a Methodist church. This led to his suspension from IIUM; however, following student demonstrations, he was reinstated before eventually resigning. Aziz has also been subject to legal investigations related to unlawful assembly in 2014 and sedition charges. His advocacy for upholding the right to critique royalty continues to provoke significant debate.

Suspension from duties

On 20 October 2011, IIUM issued Aziz a show cause letter and placed him on suspension to enable further inquiry, as declared by IIUM rector Zaleha Kamaruddin. This suspension was paid, and despite circulating rumours, Aziz maintained the right to remain affiliated with the faculty. During this period, political figures such as Kulim-Bandar Baharu MP Zulkifli Noordin demanded his resignation, which led Aziz to initiate a defamation lawsuit against both the MP and Utusan Malaysia.

Aziz contended that the Sedition Act 1948 permits constitutional rights to critique the monarchy, a freedom that should not be restricted.

Sedition investigation

While serving as a lecturer at UNISEL, Aziz became subject to a sedition inquiry after statements attributed to him concerning the Sultan of Selangor’s authority were reported. This prompted nearly 100 police complaints and a subsequent police probe, during which Aziz chose not to respond.

Alleged vote of no confidence against Perak Menteri Besar

During the 14th session of the Perak State Assembly, State Assemblyman for Kota Tampan, Saarani Mohamad, alleged that State EXCO member Aziz Bari would spearhead a vote of no confidence targeting Menteri Besar Ahmad Faizal Azumu. In reaction, Batu Gajah MP Sivakumar Varatharaju lodged a police report citing violations under the Penal Code. Another EXCO member, Sivanesan Achalingam, dismissed these claims as mere "daydreaming" by UMNO.

Aziz refuted any participation in such a vote, highlighting that he only had support from 18 party members and would still fall short of the required majority even with additional backing from UMNO. The speculation regarding this vote first emerged in mid-August when Abdul Yunus Jamahri, Chairman of the State Public Accounts Committee, described it as mere conjecture from the opposition.

Election results

Malaysian Parliament results from the 2013 general election.

Year	Constituency	Candidate		Votes	Pct	Opponent(s)		Votes	Pct	Ballots cast	Majority	Turnout
2013	P092 Sabak Bernam	Template:Party shading/Keadilan |	Abdul Aziz Bari (PKR)	14,620	46.96%	Template:Party shading/Barisan Nasional |	Mohd Fasiah Mohd Fakeh (UMNO)	16,510	53.04%	31,859	1,890	85.37%

Perak State Legislative Assembly election outcomes from 2004 onwards.

Year	Constituency	Candidate		Votes	Pct	Opponent(s)		Votes	Pct	Ballots cast	Majority	Turnout
2018	N26 Tebing Tinggi	rowspan="2" Template:Party shading/Keadilan |	Abdul Aziz Bari (DAP)	10,334	49.99%	Template:Party shading/Barisan Nasional |	Tony Khoo Boon Chuan (MCA)	6,407	30.99%	21,094	3,927	81.00%
		Template:Party shading/PAS |				Mazlan Md Isa (PAS)	3,931	19.02%
2022		rowspan="3" Template:Party shading/PH |	Abdul Aziz Bari (DAP)	11,286	40.58%		Mohammad Iskandar Abdul Rahman (BERSATU)	10,626	38.21%	27,811	660	74.71%
		Template:Party shading/Barisan Nasional |				Tony Khoo Boon Chuan (MCA)	5,705	20.51%
						Mior Haidir (PEJUANG)	194	0.70%