Allah statement: ‘Charge Najib’

DAP says the prime minister should be charged with making a statement on a matter deemed sub-judice.

GEORGE TOWN: DAP chairman Karpal Singh said caretaker Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak should be charged with making statements on the “Allah” issue, citing sub judice as the reason.

He said Pakatan Rakyat would take such action if it formed the next federal government after this general election.

He said Najib should restrain from making statements on an issue that was still pending in court. (An appeal is up for hearing on May 8 in the Court of Appeal.)

“I recommend Najib to be charged with making [statements on an issue deemed sub-judice].

“If Pakatan comes to power, we will charge him,” he told reporters at his home here today.

In a landmark ruling on Dec 31, 2009, the High Court allowed Catholic Christian weekly newspaper, Herald, to use the term “Allah” in the Bahasa Malaysia section of its publication.

The High Court quashed the home ministry’s prohibition against the publication using the word, declaring the order as “illegal, null and void”.

Justice Lau Bee Lan declared that under Article 3(1) of the Federal Constitution, applicant Titular Roman Catholic Archbishop Murphy Pakiam had the constitutional right to use “Allah” in the Herald in the exercise of his right that religions other than Islam might be practised in peace and harmony in the country.

However, six state Islamic councils had appealed against the High Court’s decision, arguing that Muslims have a monopoly over the term “Allah”.

The six Islamic state councils are from the Kuala Lumpur Federal Territory, Selangor, Kedah, Malacca, Johor and Terengganu. The Malaysian-Chinese Muslim Association is also a party to the challenge.

Najib has declared that the federal government would support the appeal in line with the Syariah law.

‘Conduct election peacefully’

On another matter, Karpal dismissed the argument that the party had no authority to sack members who were contesting this election as independents.

“When you contest an election as independent, you are expelled automatically,” he said.

Independent candidates Jenice Lee (Teratai) and G Asoghan (Bagan Dalam), and axed Kota Alam Shah incumbent assemblyman M Manoharan have argued that the DAP has no authority to take action against anyone since the Registrar of Societies had annulled the party’s central executive committee election held in Penang on Dec 15 last year.

Meanwhile, Karpal called on all parties to observe the law and conduct a peaceful and cordial election campaign.

He said all quarters should observe and uphold a violent-free general election campaign to allow the people to consider and choose in a peaceful manner.

“There should not be any culture of violence. It’s counterproductive.

“The people should be allowed to decide in peace,” said Karpal, the Bukit Gelugor candidate.

Violence has started to creep into the election campaign this week.

On Tuesday night, an explosion marred a Barisan Nasional rally in Nibong Tebal, injuring a security guard.

Police have arrested several suspects linked to the blast.

On Wednesday night, a group of “1Malaysia” Mat Rempits jeered and revved their motorcycle engines loudly to disrupt a DAP’s election talk in Kampung Sungai Gelugor.

In Sabah’s Keningau parliamentary seat, four men reportedly assaulted a youth.

Last night, a car belonging to PKR’s Seri Andalas candidate Dr Xavier Jayakumar’s daughter was allegedly torched by a group of four thugs.