Real reason for Kelantan’s cancellation of fine for wearing shorts

 

I was wrong. In my previous column, I said it was unlikely that the Kota Bharu Municipal Council would retract or cancel the compound notice issued to a non-Muslim woman for wearing a pair of shorts at her shop.

I said this after noting that local government development minister Nga Kor Ming had, on June 27, urged the council to retract the compound notice because Islamic laws should not apply to her as she was not a Muslim. He also said she had a right to wear shorts, especially given that it was in her own premises where she sold shorts.

On July 1, Nga said the council had agreed to cancel the fine after a discussion with the local government department director-general.

I think I know the real reason for it. I think readers do too.

First let me state that it has nothing to do with the call by the local government development minister to the council to cancel the fine.

It also has nothing to do with the flak the council received from members of the public and several politicians.

It has everything to do with the forthcoming elections in six states.

PAS, which controls Kelantan, does not want non-Malay voters to vote against it or the opposition Perikatan Nasional (PN) coalition, of which it is a key partner.

I’m sure PAS leaders, including president Hadi Awang, and Bersatu leaders, including Muhyiddin Yassin, would have conferred on the potential impact of this issue just as the six state legislative assemblies were dissolved to pave the way for elections.

The elections in Selangor, Negeri Sembilan, Penang, Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu are crucial to PN.

For one, it will show whether the hefty gains they, especially PAS, made in the 15th general election was a fluke or whether it represents the true sentiments of largely Malay voters.

PAS and Bersatu will know from the outcome of the six state elections whether the Malay votes came to them because Malays wanted to punish Umno for intense politicking and graft allegations or because they genuinely felt the latter two parties would better serve their interests.

The so-called green wave took everyone by surprise, including almost all political analysts, and, I believe, both Bersatu and PAS.

PAS won 43 parliamentary seats in GE15, becoming the political party with the most elected representatives in the Dewan Rakyat. It also heads the state governments in Kelantan, Terengganu, Kedah and Perlis.

And PAS, together with its PN partners, would want to strike while the iron is hot in the state elections.

In fact, PN chairman Muhyiddin told FMT in an interview that his coalition was prepared to form the governments in the six states after the state elections.

It has already decided on the allocation of administrative posts, including that of menteri besar and state executive councillors if it wins. The coalition has even gone into details, distributing among the partners the posts of heads of state government-linked companies, local councillors and village security and development committee chiefs.

PN has decided that the posts of menteri besar in Selangor and Negeri Sembilan will go to Bersatu while PAS will nominate its candidates for the menteri besar post in Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu.

It’s interesting that there was no mention of Penang in the report. I suppose Muhyiddin knows PN cannot win the state which has been a DAP stronghold since 2008. It must be noted that when the then Pakatan Rakyat defeated Gerakan in Penang in the 2008 general election, PAS was one of the partners, apart from DAP and PKR.

“After we concluded the seat negotiations, we started to discuss on forming the government (in all the states). We are one step ahead. We planned it this way because we wanted to show we are truly united,” Muhyiddin said.

In the interview, Muhyiddin also said it was crucial for his coalition to win Selangor.

“Selangor is important. It is the most developed state, not just now, but it has been for a long time. It contributes 24.8% of the national gross domestic product, which translates to around RM300 billion. We know this. That’s why we want to take over its administration, but we know it will not be easy.”

And that is why it will not do to punish a non-Muslim for wearing a pair of shorts in her own shop.

Selangor voters are not like those in Kelantan or Kedah. For one, there is a substantial non-Muslim population in Selangor. For another, even the Malay voters in Selangor are different, for they are not easily swayed by fear-mongering.

So, insisting on penalising the non-Muslim woman in Kelantan over a controversial municipal dress code may win it votes in Kedah, Terengganu and Kelantan but certainly not in Selangor, Negeri Sembilan and Penang.

And that is the reason for the cancellation of the fine.

I am sure many non-Muslim voters will see through this deft move on the part of PAS to rectify the daft move of the council. - FMT

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.