OPEN-MINDED Muslims netizens have hurled brickbats at former Dewan Negara president Tan Sri Rais Yatim when the latter voiced opposition against Sarawak’s intention to encourage the use of English in Friday sermons as “challenging the dignity of Muslims”.
The Negri Sembilan Bersatu chairman who is known to be a staunch Bahasa Melayu champion further described such proposal as having gone too far especially after the East Malaysian state has wanted to make English as its medium of instruction in schools.
“Sarawak has already announced the sermon in English. They’ve gone overboard by having robbed our dignity,” opposition-slant TV Pertiwi quoted Rais as saying when officiating a forum on the “Role of Language & Culture in Raising the Identity of the Malays” organised by the Gabungan NGO Melayu Islam (Nasionalis) in Kuala Lumpur yesterday (May 18).
Added the 82-year-old former culture, arts and heritage minister who is also fluent in the English language and Cantonese dialect: “That’s disrespectful. Our ‘masculinity’ is gone. We have no men in the fight anymore. ‘Masculinity’ is our religion … If Sarawak can do this, Sabah could follow suit (watch YouTube video above from 1:38:40).”
(Editor’s Note: In his speech which spanned more than half an hour, Rais further described the decision by Sarawak as “major”, hence the Borneo state not only owes the Federal government an explanation but must first seek consent from the Conference of Rulers first before proceeding to tweak the presentation manner of the Islamic religion.)
Interestingly, Rais’ view is shot down by Muslim netizens who wondered how the use of English as a medium in conveying Friday sermons can undermine the faith of Muslims or if Friday sermons in England, the US and Australia must also be conducted in Bahasa Melayu.
Some netizens also questioned Rais why he had done nothing to prevent the mosque at the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) from delivering its Friday sermons in English during his tenure as the university’s sixth president from 2013 to 2018.
Moreover, one netizen suggested that such move can even facilitate the preaching of Islam to foreigners who are not well-versed in Bahasa Melayu.
Others pointed out that both Sabah and Sarawak have freedom to use English as their official language even though Bahasa Melayu is the official language at the Federal level. Moreover, not all mosques will be using English as the medium to conduct their Friday sermons.
Towards this end, some netizens even highlighted the rights of Sarawak to determine its own path as stipulated in the Federal Constitution and the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA 1963).
At the end of the day, as one netizen puts it intelligently, it does not matter which language the Friday sermon is conducted in so long as its content can bless the soul of the congregate present.
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