Datuk Mahfuz Omar says its Pakatan Rakyat allies have 'agreed to disagree' on the Islamist party's hudud plan. – The Malaysian Insider pic by Nazir Sufari, December 23, 2014.
PAS today dismissed talks that its renewed push for hudud in Kelantan will destroy Pakatan Rakyat, saying the coalition had "agreed to disagree" on issues such as this.
Its information chief Datuk Mahfuz Omar said in the spirit of democracy, the party would accept if Parliament rejects the move to introduce the Shariah enactment.
"I don't consider hudud can split PR. This is because we have reached an agreement previously... when the late Karpal Singh was still alive, we had reached a consensus on this (hudud), to agree to disagree," he told reporters at the PAS headquarters in Kuala Lumpur today.
"PAS has agreed that DAP did not agree on hudud. The meaning here is we respect each others' opinions.
"This is a fine democratic achievement that PR has made.
"Like a married couple, there must be something that they disagree with one another, but they can still live under one roof. No problem."
The Pokok Sena MP's statement comes as the PAS-led Kelantan government recently moved to convene a special sitting of the legislative assembly on Monday to amend its Islamic laws in order to pave the way for a private member's bill in Parliament.
The bill will need a simple majority of 112 lawmakers supporting it in order for it to be passed and can be tabled once the Kelantan assembly passes the amendment to its Shariah Criminal Code Enactment II.
DAP has repeatedly demanded that PAS shelve its plans in Kelantan, stressing that the Islamic criminal code was not part of the opposition's common policy framework.
After a long silence, PKR today agreed with DAP.
PKR deputy president Mohamed Azmin Ali said PR would focus on the highest objectives of Shariah, including economic, social and safety issues, over the Islamic criminal law.
Mahfuz today added that its partners should not worry about the implementation of hudud as it would still need to go through the proper democratic process.
"If Parliament rejects it, then Kelantan will not be able to implement the enactment. This means PAS must accept if Parliament rejects the move.”
At the same time, Mahfuz also urged the Kelantan government to arrange a meeting with interested stakeholders to brief them on the amendment.
"I hope the state government can share this and arrange a meeting to brief to all parties interested in this issue.
"This is because all this is just an amendment to the current enactment, not a new one. Kelantan Shariah Criminal Code II has existed for almost 20 years," he said, urging sceptics to listen to the presentation of the amendment before coming to any conclusion.
- TMI
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