Permit me to highlight an article in The Star (Aug 6) that highlights the Hudud and Qisas criminal offences enactments passed by the PAS Terengganu government recently and the comments made by the state's Chief Police Officer and Senior Assistant Commissioner(1) Othman Talib.

SAC Othman was saying that he had received a circular "not to co-operate with respect to the new syariah criminal laws..." (passed by the PAS-led Terengganu government). On the same day, The Star quoted Inspector-General of Police Norian Mai as saying that the police was governed by federal laws and, as such, could not be involved with criminal law enacted by a state.

SAC Othman holds fast to the interpretation that under the Constitution, only parliament can legislate on crime and order.

He went on to cite certain legal precedents, namely Abdoolcader SCJ in Mamat bin Daud vs Government of Malaysia; Salleh Abas, then lord president, who held in Che Omar bin Che Soh v PP(1988) that "the term Islam or Islamic religion in Article 3 of the Constitution only related to rituals and ceremonies..."; he also cited the late Prof Ahmad Ibrahim, in his article "The position of Islam in the Constitution", who had written that the Constitution is the supreme law in parliament.

SAC Othman went on to say that "it is significant to note that the definition of law in the Constitution does not mention Islamic law".

The Star notes that "while the criminal offences enactments passed by the Barisan (Umno)-controlled state assemblies are not called takzir, hudud and qisas , they too criminalise incest, rape (illicit sex), prostitution, pimping, sodomy and gambling  but the states (under the control of Umno then) were allowed to legislate on them...leaving us in a curious position now".

He went on to say "...while the action against Kelantan and Terengganu may seem to be political, the federal government must find a solution to this".

I am utterly appalled by this bald-faced attempt by the 'authorities' to play 'politics' with such a sensitive issue as religion, the 'official' religion of the country and to make as if this is a light-hearted matter. Let me elucidate:

  • Our Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad had 'declared' Malaysia to be an Islamic state, in total disregard to our Constitution. This was not even debated in parliament, the very august chamber which the PM usurped.

    • Why, even a state police chief can cite legal precedents to support his case that the Constitution is the supreme law in the country. Doesn't our PM know this? Of course, he does but it only shows his arrogance.

  • Rais has also conceded that PAS-controlled state governments in Terengganu and Kelantan should not have legislated Islamic laws, contrary to the Constitution.

  • Does not this only show how double-headed Umno leaders are when they try to oppose PAS on 'political' grounds? PAS and Umno are no different. Both have agendas to turn Malaysia into an Islamic state and both are only using religion to pander to Muslim whims and fancies (and I might add, to the detriment of non-Muslims in the country who cherish the secular Federal Constitution).

  • The PM in his haste to 'outdo' PAS has shot himself in the foot by "illegally" declaring Malaysia to be an Islamic state when all and sundry have declared he had acted ultra vires the Constitution.

    • Now with PAS doing the same thing as previous Umno-controlled state governments, Umno is hard -pressed to assuage non-Muslim and non-Malay fears of the hazards of an Islamic state. Umno now cannot explain that 'their' brand of Islamic laws are kinder and gentler than PAS' when in principle they are all the same!

    So, how do we Malaysians get ourselves out of this mess 'created' by the hidden agenda of Umno?

    Remember, when the Terengganu State Legislative Assembly passed the Syariah Criminal Offences (Hudud and Qisas) Bill 2002, Umno state assemblymen abstained and one even absented himself from the proceedings.

    So, what does that show you? PAS and Umno are one and the same 'religious' animal. To further deceive non-Muslim Malaysians, Umno then resorted to using the police, who are now caught in the middle, as The Star put it.

    Why didn't Umno leaders do that when Umno-controlled state governments passed the criminal offences enactments then? Can someone from Umno give an honest answer, please. God and the whole world is watching, I said watching, not watching over you.