Guan Eng interfered in appointment of Penang mufti, PAS Youth claims

(MMO) – Penang PAS Youth has accused Lim Guan Eng of “political interference” in the appointment of the state mufti, and that the Penang chief minister had a hand in ensuring that the former state mufti’s contract was not renewed.

New Sunday Times, the Sunday edition of New Straits Times (NST) reported today Penang PAS Youth chief Afnan Hamimi Taib Azamudden saying that Lim was responsible for the non-renewal of state mufti Datuk Seri Hassan Ahmad’s contract when it expired in June 2014.

According to the report, Afnan said Hassan’s contract was not renewed because the latter had objected to Lim’s orders that non-Muslims in Penang be allowed to use the word “Allah.”

The PAS leader said that Lim had issued a statement back in December 2014 allowing non-Muslim to use the word “Allah”, and that this violated Section 48 of the state Administration of the Religion of Islam Enactment 2004.

“It is said that after the issue, Lim had demanded that the fatwas (decree) be made known to the state executive council meeting first before being presented to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.

“Hassan, who was the mufti then, objected to the order. Soon after that his contract was not renewed,” Afnan reportedly said.

Afnan, who was part of Penang’s state fatwa committee, said that the issue of political intervention by the state government had been raised in the past.

“Under any circumstances, the importance of Islam supersedes that of political importance. And, it is based on this principle that we feel we need to raise this issue,” he added.