Terengganu Mentri Besar Abdul Hadi Awang has scotched the notion that non-Muslims would have no part to play in policy-making should an Islamic state be implemented.

He was clarifying confusion arising from headlines of reports in malaysiakini ("No policy-making role for non-Muslims in Islamic State") on Sunday and The Star today ("Hadi: Non-Muslims cannot make policies in an Islamic state").

Both reports quoted him as saying that non-Muslims would have restricted roles which would not include policy-making. However, the reports also explained that the non-Muslim rights and views would be accorded due prominence in aspects not relating to Islam.

Elaborating on his statement, Abdul Hadi said an Islamic state would not deny the right of the non-Muslim community to participate in policy-making processes.

'Open to opinions'

Abdul Hadi told malaysiakini in an interview that he saw no reason why a non-Muslim could not have a say in policy-making on general issues such as housing and transportation.

"An Islamic government is open to opinions or help from anyone, regardless of religion and race, which would can enable it to be fair and transparent to everyone," he said at the PAS headquarters in Gombak, Selangor, yesterday.

"If justice is to be meted out to non-Muslims, it would be necessary for us to seek their participation (in making the relevant policies)."

Abdul Hadi went on to cite the example of Penang where the non-Muslims form the majority of the population.

It would only be fair for an Islamic government, he said, to appoint a non-Muslim to head the state. This would uphold the rights of the majority without neglecting the interests of the Muslim minority.

Restriction of role

He said the media may have misunderstood his use of the word "policy" when relaying his earlier statement.

He clarified that he was only referring to the exclusion of non-Muslims when policies involve the Quran and the traditions of Prophet Muhammad.

"When you want to make such fundamental policies, it has to involve people who believe in the ideology and teachings of the religion. But (as far as) other policies (are concerned), we welcome the participation of the non-Muslims," he said.

Recently, for instance, the Terengganu government had amended its constitution to allow for a non-Muslim representative to be elected in the event that none won the state election.

"When we have a non-Muslim representative in the Dewan Undangan, of course the person would be involved in the state's policy-making processes," said Abdul Hadi.

Collective leadership

Asked how he was faring in holding down multiple posts, Abdul Hadi said he was coping well and attributed this to the party's practice of collective leadership.

"I admit that having to carry out multiple duties can be a difficult task. But due to the collective leadership, I am able to carry out these functions systematically," he said.

"The co-operation given to me by other leaders within the party has not only helped me, but also increased my determination to work harder."

Smiling at his political secretary Dr Mohd Hatta Ramli who was present, Abdul Hadi quipped that Malaysians should not deem it strange that he was holding multiple posts.

On several occasions, he noted, Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad had held several posts both in the government and within Umno.

Responding to repeated descriptions of him as a "firebrand", Abdul Hadi said he had repeatedly advised the public to judge him by his actions as a leader and not depend on the media's perceptions.

"They can judge me based on the policies I make and how I implement them. But I feel that attempts to cast a negative image on me have backfired," he claimed.

"Since PAS took over Terengganu, we have garnered more support from the people. In the Teluk Kemang and Lunas by-elections, we secured more votes from non-Malays."