PROPOSED SHARIAH LAW: WARISAN DEMANDS GRS LEADERS TO BREAK SILENCE

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19 Mar 2021

KOTA KINABALU: Parti Warisan Sabah (Warisan) has demanded that the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS)-led State Government publicly state its stand over the PN Federal Government's attempt to table the Control and Restriction on the Propagation of Non-Muslim Religions Bill which would transgress the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA1963)

Jeremiah Mayo Gitom

Information Chief of the Penampang Warisan Division, Jeremiah Mayo Gitom questioned whether the Presidents of the GRS component parties such as SAPP’s Datuk Yong Teck Lee and Sabah Star’s Datuk Jeffrey Kitingan have full knowledge of Perikatan Nasional (PN)'s intention before it was announced by the Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department, Ahmad Marzuk Shaary on Monday.

On March 15, Ahmad Marzuk had announced that several shariah legislations will be created and others amended under a five-year plan.

"Both gentlemen sit in the PN Presidential Council together with Datuk Maximus Ongkili, who is the President of PBS so obviously, such a sensitive issue should have been deliberated by all component parties prior to the announcement.

"Sabahans, particularly the Christian communities are deeply concerned and anxious to know what the Bill is about, so we want the three presidents to come out in the open and tell us what it is all about. Their continued silence can be construed as them having had knowledge of the Bill and given their mark of approval," he said in a statement yesterday.

Jeremiah also said that such concern is understandable since some Catholic dioceses and priests are currently live streaming their mass services through Facebook in the Malay language.

"This live broadcast is necessary to enable the Christian communities to remain strong to their faith especially during this pandemic period, so will such broadcasting be deemed to have contravened the main intention of the Bill?"

While Sabah enjoys great religious tolerance evidenced by a church and mosque standing side by side in Bukit Padang, this Bill can potentially change everything and activities such as the said public broadcasting can be manipulated by extremists who may not even reside in Sabah, he said.

"If there is any provision in the Bill that contravenes the freedom to profess our religious belief in Sabah as enshrined in MA63, then we want the Sabah PN and GRS leaders to argue for our case now while this Bill is still in its infancy and not wait to debate and cast their disapproving votes at the final stage in the Dewan Rakyat," he added.

Basal Bullah

Meanwhile, the Deputy Divisional Chief of Keningau Warisan, Basal Bullah believes that if the announcement to table Act 355 also known as Hudud Law and the Control and Restriction on the Propagation of Non-Muslim Religious Bill was made unilaterally by a PN component party, then as the current trustees of Sabah, STAR, PBS and SAPP should show its strong, affirmative principle.

"The onus is upon the component party Presidents of PN and GRS who have full access to the PN Chairman, Muhyiddin Yasin to inform Sabahans and Sarawakians the details of both Bills to allay concerns that the proposed regulations may affect the Non-Muslims' religious beliefs.

"This issue extends beyond political affiliation or even religion because it affects one of Sabah's and Sarawak's special privileges that have been negotiated and agreed to by all signatories to the international treaty known as the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63)," he said.

"If the announcement to table both Bills was made unilaterally, then STAR and PBS must emulate the exemplary action by DAP in 2015 when the party decided to cut off ties with PAS thereby causing the collapse of the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) due to PAS President's Hadi Awang failure to have prior discussions with PKR and DAP over his decision to implement the Hudud Law in Kelantan.

"If DAP cut off ties with PAS merely because of political idealism, what more when this relates to the State's special privileges as STAR and PBS both boast that MA63 is their priority."