Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak must prove his conviction of being a moderate in the international world by resolving the Christian community's use of the world 'Allah', says the DAP.

His speeches, at the Christmas open house in Penang, as well as that delivered by Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Paul Low at the Christian Federation of Malaysia's (CFM) hi-tea event, failed to evoke emotions of the country being seen as moderate, Gelang Patah MP and DAP parliamentary leader Lim Kit Siang said today.

Lim said Najib in Penang had called on the people to understand the sensitivities of one another's religion so as not to offend one another, that Muslims should not hurt the feelings of Christians and likewise, Christians should not hurt the feelings of Muslims.

At the CFM function, the DAP leader said Low represented the PM and said the differences in religious faiths are not a weakening factor in our society, but rather a strong element in nation-building.

This served, Law had said, as a constant reminder that we have so much in common to share, the values of which are universally accepted, such as patriotism, peace, love, kindness, helping the poor and needy and social justice.

The PM further noted that while the people may differ in their faiths, “but we are not divided”, said Lim who noted that while such calls are noble, he asked why the people's reaction to the two speeches of Najib had been less than adulatory, if not highly suspicious?

“Why? Is it because men and women of reason and moderation in Malaysia have become extremists, rejecting the sentiments of moderation, harmony and co-existence as preached by Najib in his two Christmas speeches yesterday?” he asked.

“This is because the time has come for Najib, in the second term and fifth year as Malaysia's sixth prime minister, to prove that he is a moderate by deed and conviction and not a political chameleon who alternates between moderation and non-moderation in his speeches according to the crowd and occasion,” Lim said.

Najib has to prove his moderation

While Najib in his speech had accused politicians of stirring controversy for political gains without regard for peace and harmony, the DAP leader said most of what Najib described could be found in Umno and this included the PM himself.

This, he said, illustrated the wide gulf between the thinking and perceptions of the PM and Malaysians of reason and moderation.

“How can Najib be the national, or even international spokesman of moderation, when he has to prove to Malaysians of reason and moderation that he is one of their number?

“Najib has said that he is not interested in winning an argument or in winning a legal argument as his main concern is pursuing harmony, peace and stability for the country. This is a good basis to end the recent worsening religious fault lines in our plural society.”

Hence, Lim endorsed Archbishop Emeritus Murphy Pakian's urging to the PM to cement his own proposal for an end to Muslim-Christian hostility by withdrawing Putrajaya's legal challenge against the Catholic Church's use of the term 'Allah'.

“The ball is in Najib's court to act on the message of moderation, harmony and co-existence of his two Christmas speeches yesterday. Will he or won't he?” wondered Lim.

Yesterday, Murphy had expressed his dismay over Najib's conviction in resolving the “Allah” issue, despite having had his early education at St John's Institution, which is adjacent to the archbishop's residence.

"This is not a man who is educated in our Catholic school. By talking like that, you are just a bickering politician, I am praying that Allah will enlighten him to become a statesman," Murphy had said of wanting to see a resolution to the 'Allah' issue.

The Kuala Lumpur High Court had lifted the ban on the Catholic weekly, The Herald, and Christians in using 'Allah' to refer to God in their Bahasa Malaysia publication, but this decision was overturned by the Court of Appeal in October.

The matter is pending before the Federal Court, the highest court in the land.

However, the federal cabinet had in April 2011, as part of the 10-point solution, allowed the import and publication of the Bible in Bahasa Indonesia, with the use of the word 'Allah' in it.