Throwing a shoe into a mosque is far more deplorable than stepping on photographs of the prime minister and his wife, PAS vice-president Mahfuz Omar said today.

NONE Speaking to reporters this afternoon, Mahfuz said this is because the mosque is a holy place and is considered "Allah's home".

"Why has the government and mainstream media created a fuss over the (photograph-stepping) incident when the act of throwing a shoe into a mosque is far more deplorable?

"Are they saying that the photograph is more holy than the mosque, which is Allah's home?" he asked.

He was referring to the incident that took place last week when Perkasa members attacked a mosque where Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim was giving a talk.

Perkasa claims that it was there to protect the mosque from being abused for political reasons, and that Anwar had no credential to speak there.

The Malay rights group also denied that any of its members threw a shoe into the Masjid al-Hussain in Seberang Pumpung, Alor Setar.

NONE However, Mahfuz, who was there during the incident, insisted that a shoe was in fact chucked into the mosque during the fracas as it had hit the man next to him.

“Perkasa claims there is no video evidence of the shoe-throwing. How we were to know that they were going to throw a shoe in?

“If there was video evidence, then it can be said that we were the ones who threw the shoe in as we would know whether it would come from the left or the right,” he said.

He added that it was expected that Perkasa would not admit to the “disgusting” act as it is looked down upon, even in the villages.

While Mahfuz did not see who threw the shoe in, he is certain it was a Perkasa member as they were the ones who were “attacking” the mosque.

'Double standards'

Mahfuz, who is also Pokok Sena MP, added that the fact that police arrived after the fracas ended and that no action has been taken thus far despite a police report lodged shows “double standards”.

He said that while he disagreed with the acts committed by youths on the photographs of the prime minister and his wife, there was scarcely a need for a “special team” to “hunt them down”.

shah alam nik aziz hadi awang 060912 urinating peeing “It would suffice to identify them and advise them. Why are the police not also calling up those who were photographed pretending to urinate on (PAS leaders') Nik Aziz Nik Mat and Abdul Hadi Awang's pictures?” he asked.

He said that the failure of police to take action against those who commit political thuggery was causing the people to feel unsafe.

“I would like to ask, are they part of the political conspiracy or don't they have enough resources?

“If they don't have enough resources, then should we call in the United Nations peacekeepers?” he snided.

Police resources, Mahfuz added, would be better used to tackle the real crimes, such as rape and theft.

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