PAS leaders urged for syariah to be extended to other areas, such as the Penal Code, and not just in investment, as exemplified through the Employee Provident Fund (EPF) syariah scheme.

PAS Youth vice-chief Khairul Nizam Khirudin said syariah compliance cannot be selective, and should be extended to legislation as well.

"If the majority of the rakyat are confident in the syariah-compliant EPF scheme, then why can't the same confidence be shown towards amendments to the Syariah Courts (Criminal Jurisdiction) Act 1965 (Act 355)?" Khairul Nizam asked in a statement.

He said the amendments proposed in a Private Member's Bill by PAS president and Marang MP Abdul Hadi Awang are not just about the penalties under hudud, qisas and ta'zir.

They are to strengthen the syariah court, the powers of which have not been expanded for 30 years.

"Surely, this small effort is to ensure we comply with the syariah... I believe the desire to amend Act 355 goes beyond worldly priorities, but to please Allah," Khairul Nizam added.

Syariah vs conventional funds

EPF yesterday opened subscriptions to the syariah-compliant scheme.

A fund size of RM100 billion has been allocated for the Simpanan Shariah 2017, and is based on a first come, first served basis.

It is open to all members, but those who opt for the syariah scheme cannot revert to the conventional scheme.

Among the key difference is that the syariah scheme does not guarantee dividends of 2.5 percent, and provides returns based on investment performance for the year.

Some investment experts say banking stocks do worse than syariah stocks when the economy is weak so syariah-compliant funds tend to perform better.

To illustrate this, as at Dec 31, 2015, FBM KLCI was 3.9 percent down from a year ago while FBM Emas Syariah was up 2.3 percent, The Star Online reported.

However, it is believed the returns would be about the same in the long run.

Fruits of PAS efforts

Meanwhile, PAS information chief Nasrudin Hassan said he is optimistic that the introduction of the syariah-compliant EPF scheme would encourage the implementation of syariah in the legal system.

"I believe this dogma that 'syariah-compliant' is problematic to non-Muslims is untrue because 'syariah-compliant' benefits all," Nasrudin said in a statement.

Federal Territories PAS Youth chief Nurul Islam Mohamed said the syariah-compliant EPF scheme is the fruit of efforts by PAS, which raised the issue in Parliament.

Nasrudin, who is Temerloh MP, in a written question in Parliament last year proposed the formation of a Syariah Advisory Council in EPF to lay the foundation for a syariah-compliant scheme.

"Clearly the Islamic financial system is making a mark in our society, and it would not be impossible that it would be the basis for the global financial system," he said in a statement.