Resign now if you disagree with the Syariah, Perkasa tells trio

Dr Amini Amir of Perkasa says the three non-Muslim leaders of BN who threatened to resign over hudud are also threatening the King, who is the country’s head of Islamic matters.

(FMT) – Perkasa says the three non-Muslim leaders of Barisan Nasional (BN), who threatened to resign over the Shariah Court (Criminal Jurisdiction) (Amendment) Bill 2016 tabled in Parliament, should do so now since they do not respect the rights of Muslims.

Islamic Affairs Bureau chairman Dr Amini Amir Abdullah of the Malay rights pressure group, was quoted by Malay Mail Online as saying, “Perkasa welcomes anyone who does not respect Muslim rights and Islam as the religion of the federation to resign from the government.

“Only those who respect the foundation of the Federal Constitution and the majority need be in government.”

Amini addressed his statement to MCA president and Transport Minister Liow Tiong Lai; MIC president and Health Minister Dr S Subramaniam; and Gerakan president and Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Mah Siew Keong.

All three leaders of BN’s component parties, had over the weekend vowed to resign from their respective Cabinet posts if the Bill was passed.

Vehemently opposing the Bill, the three leaders said it would pave the way for hudud to be implemented in Kelantan, and was “unconstitutional.”

The Bill was initially listed as the last item in the Dewan Rakyat’s Standing Order, but was allowed to jump queue after Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Azalina Othman Said proposed it be tabled on the last day of the May parliamentary session.

According to Amini, the trio, by threatening to resign from the Cabinet over hudud, had also threatened the King who is the country’s head of Islamic matters.

Amini also accused the three leaders of conspiring with Opposition party DAP to stop the Shariah Bill, which he claimed would benefit Muslims in the country if it was passed.

He further argued that by threatening to resign, the three had shown disrespect to the King as well. “Any threat to the Malaysian government on Islamic matters is an insult and disrespect to the sovereignty of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong as the head of Islam and the country’s paramount leader apart from misunderstanding the position of Islam as the religion of the federation.

“Perkasa hopes (Prime Minister) Najib Razak will remain firm on the Shariah Court (Criminal Jurisdiction) (Amendment) Bill 2016.”

Although PAS’s goal for having the Bill tabled in the Dewan Rakyat finally materialised, the Islamist party’s president, Abdul Hadi Awang, made a sudden decision to defer the motion to the next parliamentary sitting in October.