GEORGE TOWN – PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang can be charged for some form of blasphemy after accusing non-Muslims of being responsible for widespread corruption in the country, said DAP’s legal bureau.
Its chief Ramkarpal Singh said in a statement that Hadi’s remarks “were not based on any evidence or empirical studies and were basically made to play to the gallery and instil in the minds of some the myth that non-Muslims seem to be the root cause of one of the most heinous of social ills, corruption”.
He also urged the attorney-general to charge Hadi under Section 298A and Section 504 of the Penal Code “without fear or favour”.
Section 298A refers to “causing, etc., disharmony, disunity, or feelings of enmity, hatred or ill will, or prejudicing, etc., the maintenance of harmony or unity, on grounds of religion”.
Section 504 refers to “intentional insult with intent to provoke a breach of the peace”.
Ramkarpal added that leaders cannot be allowed to make such statements with impunity as they have far-reaching implications and threaten to disrupt peace and harmony in the country.
Last week, Hadi claimed that non-Muslims and non-Bumiputeras were most involved in causing corruption, but did not provide any context to his racialised claims against non-Muslims and non-Malays.
Top leaders in Hadi’s party, however, were accused of receiving RM90 million of funds in 2016 from then prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, as alleged by the Sarawak Report website.
Najib allegedly wanted to ensure PAS’s support for Barisan Nasional and Umno ahead of the 2018 general election, the whistleblower website had claimed.
Hadi sued Sarawak Report editor Clare Rewcastle-Brown for defamation but later retracted the suit and opted for an out-of-court settlement. Rewcastle-Brown did not retract the article.
Najib, however, has denied ever giving RM90 million to Hadi or to PAS. – The Vibes, August 25, 2022
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