By Athi Shankar
BUTTERWORTH: A DAP assemblyman here has hit out at Terengganu PAS Youth chief Mohd Nor Hamzah for “being rude” by calling on Karpal Singh to quit politics over the Islamist party’s hudud issue.
He said Karpal has been consistently the most vocal elected representative to voice out against any threat against the secular ideals of the Malaysian constitution.
“Karpal has regularly fought for justice, fairness and equality for all. PAS Islamic stance to implement hudud is clearly unconstitutional,” he told FMT today.
Thus, he said Karpal was duty-bound to hit out at PAS’ unconstitutional and extreme Islamist agenda, which can threaten national unity in long run.
He reminded Nor Hamzah to show respect to elders like Karpal, given the DAP leader’s political experience.
“Who is he to call Karpal to quit… is he qualified to do so in first place? It’s rude, uncalled-for and unjustifiable,” said Tanasekharan.
In calling for Karpal’s political retirement, Mohd Nor claimed that the senior politician’s “outdated views” had become a liability to Pakatan Rakyat.
The Bukit Payung assemblyman claimed that Karpal’s media outbursts against the implementation of hudud had strained the relationship among Pakatan parties.
The PAS Islamic agenda could become a hurdle for Pakatan to seize control of Putrajaya in the next general election.
Karpal has regularly spoken against PAS Islamic brand while PAS leaders have erroneously claimed that he was alone in the DAP opposing it.
‘Karpal not alone’ DAP top defenders of ethnic Chinese interests like Lim Kit Siang and, his son and party secretary-general Guan Eng may have been quiet on the Islamist issue.
But party grassroots leaders like those in Selangor DAP are backing Karpal to oppose any attempt to implement Islamic law.
The group spokesmen, Klang-based DAP branch leaders – Taman Chi Liung Indah’s K Yogasigamany and Taman Gembira’s Ivan Ho – insisted that Karpal was not alone in the issue.
Claiming to have the support 18 DAP branches in Selangor, the duo slammed PAS’ Islamic state agenda as “incompatible” with the Malaysian secular society.
“We in the DAP fully support Karpal’s views that no party in Pakatan should impose their brand of Islamic values on a multiracial society,” they told FMT.
They rapped PAS for using its influence in Selangor Pakatan government to spark several controversial issues since 2008.
Among them were segregation of unmarried couples in a cinema in Kuala Selangor; JAIS (Selangor Islamic Affairs Department) raid on Damansara Utama Methodist Church; confiscation of alcohol items in Shah Alam; outright objection to build cinemas in Bangi; and demolition of a pig abattoir in Alor Setar, Kedah.
The duo blamed the PAS brand of Islam and the ineptness of relevant authorities for the controversial issues to remain unresolved despite mass protest.
“We in the DAP will always oppose any attempt by PAS to implement hudud law in this country. We will back Karpal on this all the way,” said Yogasigamany and Ho in a statement to FMT.
