Hudud Bill: Resign if you must, BN leaders told

Umno Youth exco member says those who threatened to resign over the hudud Bill have forgotten they pledged to protect the Constitution that recognises Islam as the federal religion.

PETALING JAYA: Barisan Nasional (BN) leaders who said they were ready to resign from their Cabinet posts if the Shariah Courts (Criminal Jurisdiction) (Amendment) Bill 2016 is passed, should not only threaten to but go ahead and just resign.

Speaking to Astro Awani, Umno Youth exco member Armand Azha Abu Hanifah, said, “What is the problem with certain party presidents in BN with the Bill to the extent they are threatening to resign? If they want to resign, then just resign.”

He said it was obvious these leaders did not understand the issue at hand and had forgotten that they had pledged to uphold the Constitution that recognised Islam as the official religion of the country.

“Maybe they have forgotten that the Federal Constitution had clearly stated that Islam is the federal religion. Maybe they have forgotten that they have undertaken the oath to protect the Constitution,” he told the news portal.

Armand Azha said this following the threat to resign by MCA president and Transport Minister Liow Tiong Lai; MIC President and Health Minister Dr S Subramaniam; and Gerakan president and Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Mah Siew Keong.

All three were reported to have said that if the law was passed, it would pave the way for hudud to be implemented in Kelantan, a move they condemned as “unconstitutional.”

The uproar over the hudud Bill erupted last Thursday when PAS President Abdul Hadi Awang tabled the Shariah Court (Criminal Jurisdiction) (Amendment) Bill 2016 in Parliament.