PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang has labelled four Malay DAP leaders ‘uneducated’ after they accused him of exploiting Islam for political gain.
Hadi said a recent statement he posted on social media, in which he claimed DAP wanted to steer the Federal Constitution back towards secular rule, was firmly grounded in Islamic scripture, the Federal Constitution and past statements by DAP leaders.
‘The four Malay DAP leaders who accused me of exploiting Islam for political gain through my writings are uneducated.
‘They are not learned persons,’ Berita Harian quoted him as saying.
DAP leaders question PAS-DAP alliance
In a Facebook post two days ago, Hadi accused DAP of seeking to steer the Federal Constitution back towards secular rule and glorifying the Communist Party of Malaya’s struggle.
The Marang MP also claimed that the proposed Urban Renewal Act was aimed at evicting poor Malays from their homes in the name of urban renewal.
He further said secularism was a deviant teaching brought by Western colonisers and claimed that DAP viewed the Federal Constitution as secular in nature.
His remarks drew criticism from DAP Malay leaders Syahredzan Johan, Young Syefura Othman, Sheikh Umar Bagharib Ali and Syerleena Abdul Rashid.
The four leaders questioned why these issues had not prevented PAS from working with DAP under Pakatan Rakyat between 2008 and 2015.
Hadi explains PAS’s position on alliances
Responding to questions over PAS’s former alliance with DAP, Hadi said the two parties had some areas of common ground.
However, he said PAS’s principle in any political alliance was that its partners must not oppose the Islamic party’s policies.
According to Hadi, the Pakatan Rakyat coalition eventually collapsed after DAP opposed the PAS-led Kelantan government’s move to ban alcohol consumption among Muslims and to pass the state shariah criminal enactment.
