‘Pakatan leaders stopped MBPJ from seizing DUMC’

Blogger Papa Gomo makes the claim based on a document allegedly leaked from MBPJ.

PETALING JAYA: Pro-Umno blogger Papa Gomo has claimed that Pakatan Rakyat leaders had interfered to stop Petaling Jaya City Council’s (MBPJ) shutting down the Damansara Utama Methodist Church (DUMC) last Thursday.

The seizure operation was supposed to be conducted by MBPJ’s security and enforcement division.

DUMC has been in the limelight since Aug 3 when Selangor religious department (JAIS) interrupted a dinner held at the church following allegations that efforts to proselytize the Christian faith to Muslims were under way.

Papa Gomo’s claim was substantiated with a report purportedly from MBPJ’s enforcement and security division on its operation to seize the hall.

The report stated that on Aug 11 at 10.30am, the enforcement and security division had to call off its operation to seize DUMC after receiving a telephone call at 10.58am from Selangor senior exco Teresa Kok who queried about the seizure. The report added that Kok requested the operation to be called off.

The report also claimed that PAS’ Shah Alam MP Khalid Samad had similarly urged the MBPJ to cancel the seizure operation at 11.07am.

Papa Gomo also claimed that according to the leaked report, another Selangor exco, DAP’s Ronnie Liu had allegedly warned that personnel from the security and enforcement division woud be transferred out if they continued with the operation.

The report claimed that at 11.40 am, there were more instructions from the top, including from PKR’s Elizabeth Wong, to cancel the operation and the police was also notified abut the cancellation.

The two page report has the word ‘Sulit’ (confidential) stamped on its top right corner but does not carry MBPJ’s letterhead.

Catch-22 for PAS

According to Tulang Besi’s conspiracy theory, “If PAS opposed JAIS’ raid on Damansara Utama Methodist Centre, the Islamist party would be shunned by the Muslims.

“And if PAS supported JAIS, then it would lose credibility among the non-Muslim crowd.”

This was the blogger’s conclusion on his blog, Malaysia Waves following JAIS’ reluctance to meet with PAS on Aug 16.

The religious department does not want to face PAS even though details of its investigations are already published on pro-Umno websites.

The blogger further speculated that the whole act was masterminded by Umno.

During a press conference last week, PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang said: “We cannot make a statement before getting an explanation from the church and JAIS.”

Selangor state exco for Islamic affairs and Malay customs Hasan Ali had defended the raid. Hasan Ali is the immediate past Selangor PAS commissioner.