PAS presidential candidate Ahmad Awang has lamented that the Islamic party's members have taken to slandering and defaming those who do not "kowtow" to a certain faction.

Ahmad said such "character assassination" and personal attacks used to be Umno's weapon against PAS, but it has now become a tool for his own members to attack him after his nomination and decision to contest for the top post.

"Before, it was Umno who defamed us, but now it is the PAS people who are doing it.

"I don't know what else to say, as I have been always been working within the Islamic movement.

"I have already explained why five years ago I was not active (in politics). I am an ulama too. So now what they are doing is character assassination," he said at a forum last night at the Kuala Lumpur Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall (KLSCAH).

Ahmad has been attacked by the faction loyal to status quo, calling him "DAP friendly" just days away from the party polls next week.

Ahmad said such attacks only showed those critics were bankrupt of ideas on how to tackle his challenge for the party's top post.

Yesterday, PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang ( photo ) told party members to choose between dyed-in-the-wool party leaders or those who are "DAP sympathisers" at the party polls next week.

 

"It is up to PAS members whether they want to liberate themselves and follow their own policies or to follow DAP's dictates," he was quoted as saying by Harakahdaily in his stronghold of Marang, Terengganu yesterday.

 

Hadi claimed certain quarters were out to influence how PAS should conduct its business.

Ridding professionals will kill PAS

Meanwhile another panelist, former Selangor menteri besar Muhammad Muhammad Taib, said PAS would lose the professionals if they stayed with the status quo.

He said Umno would never let PAS, which was originally from the ruling party's religious wing, be strong.

"Politics is the art of possibilities. (Umno) has to do something, or risk losing their footing.

"So the way they do it is to break up Pakatan - PAS and DAP need to be at loggerheads.

"And the way to rupture PAS is to split the ulama and the professionals. I see PAS becoming the victims, and some PAS leaders becoming victims.

"And then they say the professionals want to oppose hudud. No one opposes hudud (in PAS), the one I know (who opposes hudud) is Umno," he said.

Muhammad ( photo ), who joined PAS in 2013, said if PAS members discard the professionals in this coming muktamar, it will weaken the party and PAS will have problems enticing other professionals to join.

"If the ulama break up with the professionals, they will no longer join PAS. Only ulama will be left.

"(If that were the case) it would be better for (PAS) to turn into a religious body. We however want a strong PAS that can be an alternative to take over the nation's leadership," he said.