PAS slams Najib for "fooling" Malays over the Constitution

KUALA LUMPUR - PAS vice-president Mahfuz Omar has thanked UMNO president Najib Razak for indirectly denying the claims by some of his own party leaders that the Malays' position as enshrined in the Constitution would be undermined if Pakatan Rakyat took over the government.

Speaking to UMNO delegates at the party's general assembly, Najib was quoted as saying that the the special position of the Malays could not be removed without the approval of the Malay Rulers’.

Mahfuz said this proved that regardless of who was in power, the Malays’ position would always be protected.

He added that the prime minister's statement indirectly vindicated PR's denial that it wanted to remove the clause in the Constitution, a charge familiar among UMNO leaders during every election campaign.

“The guarantee in the constitution as pointed by Najib in his maiden speech in UMNO 61st General Assembly itself revealed a lie and sinister plot by UMNO people to scare the Malays by telling that they would lose power if the party...is no longer in power,” said Mahfuz.

With Najib’s clarification, said Mahfuz, the Malays would not be duped by UMNO again, saying they had been threatened continuously over their special position.

“We will go around the country to rally the Malays to say ‘no’ towards the insults thrown at them. UMNO has been insulting the Malays by fooling the community ... with the sole purpose of abusing power and robbing the nation’s riches,” he added. - Harakahdaily