Pandikar Amin rebukes Shah Alam MP for politicising religious issues

KUALA LUMPUR: Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia today rebuked Shah Alam MP Khalid Abd Samad for disrupting the proceeding by frequently interrupting Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Dr Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki, who was responding to questions.
During the session, which discussed religious issues and developments on an atheist group in the country, Khalid, from Amanah, had made remarks seen as politically motivated.
"If we want to fight atheism, Muslims should be sincere about their religion, they should speak against injustice, reject corruption and embezzlement, and demand for the government's transparency in the 1MDB case … then only people can see it's a powerful religion," he said.
In response, Asyraf Wajdi threw what Khalid said back to him, noting that when he was previously with another party, he had used religion a lot, accused the government of rejecting Islam, that the government was secular and did not practise Islam, but when he switched parties, he changed his views.
Hearing this, Khalid accused the deputy minister of being personal.
Khalid's subsequent action of frequently interrupting Asyraf Wajdi's replies incurred the wrath of the Speaker, who warned Khalid that he would eject him from the House if he remained stubborn.
"I will consider whether what was said (by Khalid) is against the standing order. When YB Shah Alam spoke, I listened carefully but ultimately, a religious issue was being politicised with the 1MDB case."
Asyraf Wajdi said he had to respond with a political slant as the accusations thrown at the government were baseless.
To a question from Siti Mariah Mahmud (Amanah-Kota Raja) on developments on the Atheist Republic Consulate of Kuala Lumpur, Asyraf Wajdi said the ideology was in conflict with one the principles of the Rukun Negara, belief in God.
"The Federal Constitution also states that the government can introduce legal provisions to curb any doctrine or belief that can threaten the Islamic religion.
"For non-Muslims, it goes against public order and morals and if there are parties trying to spread such ideology like atheism and to refute the sanctity of other religions, action can be taken under the Sedition Act," he said. — Bernama