'Electoral scandal forgotten, no thanks to JAIS-church controversy'

A PAS leader today questioned the sudden interest among UMNO-backed groups to champion the issue of apostasy among Muslims in the country following the Selangor Islamic Religious Department's controversial presence during a church dinner in Petaling Jaya last week.

Saying the news about the incident had buried the recent shocking discovery of non-citizens being accepted as voters by the Election Commission, PAS Central Committee member Idris Ahmad said these groups had been hysterical over the issue in their attempt to show that UMNO was championing the cause of Islam.

Idris reminded that PAS subscribed to the rule of law and as such decided to hear from all parties involved in the controversy, Idris 'congratulated' the UMNO groups for recognising the importance of protecting Muslims.

“Congratulations are in order to the UMNO leaders and their media for finally realising the danger of apostasy. We hope it is not just politically motivated, as was the case when they were incensed over the 'Allah' issue," said Idris, referring to UMNO's opposition to Christians' demand to use the term 'Allah' in Malay-language Bibles, a demand which received support from the Islamic party.

“It is strange that UMNO was vehemently defending Allah's name but oppose His laws," he added.

On August 3, JAIS officers turned up at a dinner event held at the Damansara Utama Methodist Church in Petaling Jaya, claiming it had received complaints over attempts at propagating Christianity to Muslim guests there.

Yesterday, PAS's Central Committee decided to hear from all sides before taking a stand on the matter.

According to Idris, PAS has always been consistent in issues related to Muslim welfare, and said UMNO and its media had hitherto kept mum on similar issues.

He cited the party's opposition to PAS's policies against the gambling scourge as an example.

“After 54 years of rule, UMNO has failed to drive home the danger of gambling to their friends," said Idris, in an apparent reference to MCA's legal suit against the Kelantan administration for limiting gambling activities in the state.

Idris reminded that the BN-controlled media were carefully trying to cover up the electoral scandal by raising religious issues.

- Harakahdaily