YOURSAY ‘The ruler should have nipped this in the bud in the first place.’

Selangor returns seized copies of Bible

RatBatBlue: At last, common sense, which nowadays is a commodity not so common, prevailed, and the Selangor sultan, in all his wisdom, has accepted even the non-Muslims as his cherished rakyat.

Menteri Besar Azmin Ali was determined from the start to settle this issue and has delivered, unlike his predecessor who dithered.

I am not going to mention the state religious authorities, as I feel that they have not “accepted” this decision wholeheartedly, and have complied only due to orders by the sultan.

However, I am confident that this act of returning the bibles has set a precedent, and that the overzealous religious authorities will be more cautious in the future and not act just on a whim or complaint without proper investigations.

Terjah: Good and well done to Azmin and Selangor sultan. The sultan, though he is a Muslim, now clearly shows that he is the ruler for all. Every Malaysian should be very proud to witness this handing-over ceremony, held right in the palace.

Azmin has solved this problem at a special level, and not just handing over the bibles in a flippant way, but in a ceremony which symbolises the true meaning of mutual respect for all children of God. As a Muslim, I am very happy with this decision.

Anonymous_1389801797: This is a ceremony for the closure of a disgusting act done in the name of Islam. Hopefully, this is the end of such disgrace for a beautiful religion.

ConstitutionIsSupreme: Well done, Azmin. You have scored a goal here. But you need to work harder to ensure this foolish act by Jais (Selangor Islamic Department) and Mais (Selangor Islamic Council) will not happen again.

In my opinion, that can only happen when the culprits are made to apologise for their wrongdoing. This is in accordance with Islamic teaching as well, isn't it?

His Royal Highness (HRH) need to be ‘sanjung tinggi’ (praised highly) as HRH finally saw the truth and acted truthfully.

Tanteo: It should have never come to this. So everyone is coming out of this squalid episode smelling like roses? More like the air from a sewage treatment plant. The ruler should have nipped this in the bud in the first place.

Rupert16: Sanity and wisdom prevails. This is a good start towards an inclusive and tolerant Malaysian society, which was the case, till bigots like Perkasa and Isma came into existence.

Anon1: Hopefully, Jais' and Mais’ leash are shortened by the authorities after this incident to ensure that they consult the elected representatives before they do anything.

There should be a law preventing them from conducting raids, unless accompanied by the police or members of Suhakam (Human Rights Commission) or some similar authority.

Fair Play: As a right-thinking Malaysian (although not a Selangor rakyat), I am happy that sanity prevails and HRH the Sultan of Selangor, in all his wisdom, has consented to the return of the bibles after Azmin had briefed HRH on the ground reality and the aspirations of the Selangor rakyat (i.e. all communities).

In truth, Azmin has emerged as a strong political leader and PM material in the not-to-distant future. Indeed, a job well done by Pakatan Rakyat in governing Selangor.

Vijay47: Phew! What a relief. Thus ends a sad chapter in our lives and let us move on to happier times where mutual respect and understanding that transcend race and religion are more manifest than has unfortunately been of late.

Let this be a reminder to the fanatics and zealots that extremism has no place in Malaysia and let politicians who fish in troubled waters learn that ultimately, their abusive, intolerant ways will get them nowhere.

Ironically and deservedly, these politicians and "stupid" NGOs have to be silent now since the decision to return the bibles was the sultan's.

To Azmin, congratulations on a delicate job well done. We were led to believe that the Bible Issue would remain as it was and that there would be no change to the position.

Yet within a short while of becoming menteri besar, you achieved what many thought would never be resolved. This success will look well in your CV - when you apply for the post of prime minister.

Paul Warren: Now, that was not too difficult, was it? I hope the guys who seized the bibles were the ones who handed over the bibles.

The next thing to do is to repeal all these legislations that were ill-conceived to be taken out of the law books. They only act as an insult to Islam itself.

Msian1st: I can't believe I am seeing this. Daulat Tuanku!

Green Penang: It's great to see a good ending to a nasty chapter. A good job by Azmin. It was gracious and wise of HRH Sultan to be present at the handover. Would the ‘longkang’ NGOs dare to make a squeak about this topic afterwards?

Telestai!: While I applaud Azmin for achieving what former MB Khalid Ibrahim could not do, I simply can't understand what he meant by "an amicable solution".

What needs to be amicable when the bibles were illegally confiscated? It simply needs to be returned, with an apology. Surely nothing too hard about that.

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