‘Feud over hudud will affect PR’
DAP-PAS spat on Islamic law may undo them in polls, says Saifuddin
(The Malay Mail) – DEPUTY Higher Education Minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah says the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) public spat over hudud will affect its public perception as a legitimate government-in-waiting.
The issue of an Islamic state has been brought to the fore again when Terengganu PASYouth Chief Mohd Nor Hamzah called for DAP national chairman Karpal Singh to resign from politics when he claimed hudud had become “outdated”.
Saifuddin said hudud would remain a thorn in PR’s alliance if DAP and PAS fail to resolve their difference before the coming general election.
“Well, PR is my worthy opposition in the coming general election. I would say I think it is an issue that they have to solve because the rakyat will be looking at how they solve major issues because for PAS, hudud is a major campaign manifesto and if DAP keeps on going after it, then it may affect PR,” he said.
“I wish the hudud issue would become a major stumbling block for PR but the rakyat will decide.” Saifuddin was speaking to reporters after attending the Selangor Model United Nations Conference at Taylor’s College yesterday.
He said PAS had overstated the issue of hudud and an Islamic state. “I think hudud has been a topic that has been blown out of proportion.
“I don’t really like to slam PAS on this but I am a believer that there is such a thing as political Islam but it is definitely more than just hudud .
“Even when you talk about an Islamic nation state, again, it is more than just hudud. Hudud is only part of the whole spectrum of being an Islamic state.
“So I think the problem is that PAS has been pushing for hudud but unfortunately they have not implemented it in states where they are the government.”
He said hudud and the Islamic state issue must not be misused for personal or political interest.
“If there is a row between PAS and DAP about hudud , it has been there for a long time. That only amplifies the fact that sometimes we should not blow certain issues out of proportion to the extent that it wrongly represents what you want to push for.”
