Hadi slammed for 'commercialising' religion
PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang has been blasted for "commercialising" Islam following his remarks that Christian missionaries bait their targets with money and other forms of aid.
MCA vice-president Chew Mei Fun criticised Hadi for these "inflammatory accusations", adding that PAS Kelantan itself offers government incentives for every new convert to the Muslim faith.
"This PAS hardliner practises selective amnesia of PAS commercialising religion," she said in a statement today.
Chew pointed out that the PAS government of Kelantan offers RM10,000 to each Muslim preacher who marries an indigenous person and converts him or her to Islam.
The state also provides Muslim preachers with free accommodation, a four-wheel-drive vehical and a fixed allowance of RM1,000, she said.
"Is the PAS-led Kelantan govenrment not equally as guilty of the very accusation they conjure against Christians?" she asked.
As such, Chew questioned the sincerity of Kelantan's attempt to propagate Islam and explained that these methods might be construed as PAS taking advantage of the underprivileged indigenous people in the state.
Even the sincerity of the preachers in spreading their religion would be questioned, she pointed out, as it would seem like they were merely attracted to the material incentives offered by the Kelantan government.
However, she stressed that MCA was not questioning the faith of Muslim converts nor the religion itself.
MCA merely wants PAS to reflect on its own actions before trying to sow suspicion against the Christian community through unsubstantiated claims.
Hadi ( photo ) has previously reportedly said that Christian missionaries were now targeting Africa, "where the people are far from being educated and civilised", as well as Sabah and Sarawak.
This is because, he claimed, the missionaries have been rejected in Europe as Christianity is no longer saleable in countries with high education levels.
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