Amanah’s loyalty to DAP impressive, says Perlis mufti
(FMT) – Perlis mufti Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin took a shot today at Amanah’s relationship with DAP, saying the PAS splinter party appears very loyal to its Pakatan Harapan (PH) counterpart.
In an interview with controversial preacher Muhammad Zamri Vinoth Kalimuthu, he said Amanah seemed to follow DAP’s stance on various issues and had refrained from commenting on issues pertaining to the Muslim community.
“It seems Amanah will either remain silent or find excuses to defend them (DAP), whether directly or indirectly,” he added.
“I’m also impressed because I don’t find them airing their views on issues that worry Muslims, although these are sometimes important issues for PH.”
Asri cited the recent controversy over the distribution of comic books on the Belt and Road Initiative and the arrest of individuals for alleged links to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), saying nothing was heard about these matters.
“But on Zakir Naik, we (heard). Their statement was nearly the same as DAP’s,” he said when asked by Zamri if the Muslim community could put its trust in Amanah.
He added that it would benefit him greatly if he knew how to train others to be as loyal to him as Amanah is to DAP.
Asri also said several PH non-Muslim leaders, especially from DAP, had changed their attitude after coming into power. He described them now as “hasty”, with a tense attitude towards Muslims.
“Once they obtained power, their attitudes became very different,” he said. “The statements released each day were all as if in enmity against the Muslim community, who didn’t intend to be enemies in the first place.”
He said he too had been a fierce critic of the Barisan Nasional government and had supported a change in administration.
He also said he had had friendly ties with DAP prior to the 14th general election, adding that former Penang chief minister Lim Guan Eng had even invited him to serve under the state government.
He said criticism is important to ensure that past mistakes do not occur again, and warned people against blindly following the government or any political party.
