Are you calling Allah ‘stupid’ too? PAS Ulama asks Nazri
(Malay Mail Online) – PAS’s ulama wing bristled today at Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Aziz’s (pic) “stupid people” description of those discussing hudud, saying the federal minister had as good as labelled Allah “stupid” for creating the controversial Islamic punishment system.
In a statement here, the wing’s information chief Datuk Dr Mohd Khairuddin Aman Razali at-Takiri reminded Nazri that it was on Allah’s laws, which include hudud, qisas and Ta’zir, that he was created.
“Is Allah stupid to you? Ridiculing Allah’s laws equals ridiculing Allah. It is an action that could create disbelief (in God),” he said.
He added that as a Muslim, Nazri should repent and seek forgiveness from Allah for his remarks.
“No human is perfect,” Mohd Khairuddin said. “But mistakes and missteps still can be corrected.”
He urged religious leaders in the government to advise Nazri on the issue, pointing out that the Umno leader is also a federal minister.
On Tuesday, Nazri said those bickering over the hudud law and its planned implementation in Kelantan are “stupid people” as the controversial Islamic penal code runs counter to the Federal Constitution and would therefore never be implemented in Malaysia.
“They are all stupid, whoever is talking about this from whichever political party. This can only happen if there is an amendment to the Federal Constitution.
“So why even talk or bother about something that is against the Constitution and will not happen? Exercise in futility,” the former de facto law minister told reporters when met at the Parliament lobby here.
Nazri, who is now tourism minister, stressed that punishments for crime and theft under hudud could not be passed without first amending the Constitution as the civil courts already have clear punishments for such offences.
Empowering the Syariah Courts to carry out these punishments would require two-thirds parliamentary majority to amend the Constitution, he pointed out.
The minister was later urged by PAS information chief Datuk Mahfuz Omar to retract his remark, as it was an “insult” to Muslims.
“Be careful with your words, Nazri. He must retract his remarks,” Mahfuz said in Parliament yesterday.
PAS-ruled Kelantan passed key amendments to its Shariah Criminal Code II 1993 last Thursday in a move to enable the eventual implementation of hudud in the Malay-majority east coast state.
PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang had earlier last week served notice to Parliament on the proposed Bill, but BN’s law minister Datuk Nancy Shukri said it may not make it into the order paper for the current session as there are many others on the schedule.
With DAP and PKR’s rejection, PAS and its 21 MPs in the lower House must rely on all of Umno’s MPs plus more from other non-Muslim parties in order to get a simple majority of 112 votes to get the Bill passed.
