Najib DITHERS on hudud, Umno meeting on issue cancelled, 'not sure' when the new date

KUALA LUMPUR - With Pakatan Rakyat (PR) facing an imminent split over PAS’s contentious hudud plans, its political foes in Umno appear to have chosen to remain mum for now, with no directive yet from the party’s national leadership on whether to support the law.

According to Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim, the Barisan Nasional (BN) anchor party has not issued any formal notice to its members on the issue, despite the earlier professed support for hudud by the party’s Kelantan chapter.

He revealed to Malay Mail Online that a party meeting had been scheduled for this Wednesday but has now been been postponed to an undetermined date.

“There was a planned meeting for Wednesday but it was cancelled. I am not sure when the next one will be,” Shahidan said when met in the Parliament here.

Shahidan added that he was unsure if the now cancelled Wednesday meeting was called specifically to discuss Umno’s stand on the controversial Islamic penal code.

“So far, I have not been given any directive on hudud and the only person who can make a statement on that is the Umno secretary-general (Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor),” he added.

Over the weekend, several BN component party leaders confirmed that the pact’s chairman, Umno president Datuk Seri Najib Razak, will release a statement on hudud this week.

Although the parties openly declared their opposition to hudud, an Islamic penal code that prescribes punishments like amputation for crimes like stealing, they were dismissive when asked to reveal what the BN statement would read like.

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim

Last Thursday, PAS-ruled Kelantan passed key amendments to its Shariah Criminal Code II 1993 in a move to enable the eventual implementation of hudud in the Malay-majority east coast state.

All 12 Umno state lawmakers voted for the amendments but the ruling party’s national leadership has yet to declare if the same support would be given to PAS’s hudud ambition at the federal level.

Yesterday, DAP leader Lim Kit Siang mooted the formation of a new government by a “Save Malaysia” coalition to comprise lawmakers from both sides of the political divide, after noting that both PR and BN appear to be torn in their support for hudud.

In PR, he said PAS and its president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang have openly disregarded their party’s cooperation with DAP and PKR by refusing to abandon its hudud ambition.

BN appears no different, Lim observed, citing contradicting remarks from Umno politicians over their support for the Islamic law, and the clear show of opposition from the ruling party’s partners in the pact such as MCA, Gerakan and other east Malaysian parties.

Today, Lim defended his call for the new bipartisan coalition, saying it would be a necessary scenario if Umno lawmakers support PAS’s hudud plans in Parliament.

Hadi had earlier last week served notice to Parliament on a proposed Bill to enable the enforcement of hudud in Kelantan but BN’s law minister Datuk Nancy Shukri said it may not make it into the order paper for the current session as there are many others on the schedule.

Lim said Umno’s backing for the bill would destroy both PR and BN, and that the only logical step forward would be to form a new coalition with MPs who want to defend the supremacy of the Federal Constitution.

“If the private members’ bills are tabled, it will destroy both coalitions.

“It is time to think of a new coalition to defend whose members are prepared to defend constitutionalism and the rule of law,” Lim told reporters at a news conference at the Parliament lobby.

“The very fact that Umno state assemblymen were allowed to vote in support of hudud in Kelantan without any objection showed a major change in BN and Umno’s policy,” the Gelang Patah MP said.

DAP’s central executive committee is scheduled to meet tonight to discuss its future in PR. - Malay Mail