Speech 'too free' under Harapan, cautions Tuan Ibrahim

INTERVIEW | Freedom of speech is far better under the new Pakatan Harapan government than it was in BN's time, PAS deputy president Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man said.

However, he said, such freedom needs to be better controlled when it comes to questioning religion.

“I see there are those who take advantage because the Pakatan Harapan government is more open (to criticism). The room (to question) is more open compared to the BN era, because in their time, there were too many restrictions.

“Just for criticising the government got some people transferred. The people were also afraid to criticise the government.

“But such openness is being taken advantage of. When the government is open, people will take the opportunity. This needs to be monitored quickly,” Tuan Ibrahim said in an interview with Malaysiakini on Wednesday.

The Kubang Kerian MP said this when asked about claims that Malays and Islam were being threatened under the Harapan administration.

He said the government needs to monitor the social media, in particular, as he fears that unrestrained criticism would become the accepted culture if unchecked.

“I see how some are so bold to criticise Islam. It is increasingly evident in the social media and by right, a responsible government should not let this continue, because, in the end, this becomes a culture where they feel they can criticise anything.

“(Speeches should be) free, but controlled. In the past you could not (criticise) at all; but you also cannot have complete freedom,” Tuan Ibrahim said.

He said while it is not easy to monitor the social media, it is something that needs to be done to curb such “culture”.

He was commenting on calls to close tahfiz schools, which had come under the spotlight last year for not meeting fire safety standards.

After the general election, former information minister Zainuddin Maidin suggested such schools be closed, claiming that they did not “give any hope to the future generations of Muslims”.

'No qualified Muslims?'

Asked whether he agreed with the Himpunan Kebangkitan Ummah (Rise of the Muslim Community) rally that was held last weekend, Tuan Ibrahim said he agreed with their views that Malays and Islam were under threat, saying their actions were motivated by appointment of non-Muslims in the judiciary.

“The concerns arise when people call for tahfiz schools to be closed, whereas discos are not closed.

“And there is the issue of appointments to the judiciary. It is not that PAS does not accept (the appointments), but isn't there one Muslim (who can be appointed)?

“That is why Muslims are concerned. It is not a question of whether one is qualified or not.

“But it can't be that there are no Muslims who are qualified (for the said posts).”

Tuan Ibrahim was likely referring to the appointments of the chief justice, attorney-general and de facto law minister, which fell to Justice Richard Malanjum, Tommy Thomas and Liew Vui Keong, respectively.

The appointments of the trio, all non-Muslims, caused consternation among certain groups, which claimed this was proof that Harapan had sidelined Muslims.

Tuan Ibrahim said while PAS accepts the appointments, their concerns are based on “that attitude”.

“And then comes the call to recognise the UEC (Unified Examination Certificate),” he added.

“That's why we rallied to voice our concerns,” the PAS deputy president added. -Mkini