PUTRAJAYA: The decision by PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang (pix) to settle his suit against Sarawak Report editor Clare Rewcastle-Brown out of court shows that the Islamic party has been lying all along about its cosy relationship with Umno, said Amanah communications director Khalid Abdul Samad.
“Before, we (PAS members who left the party to form Amanah), had already revealed the relationship between the sworn-enemies (PAS and Umno) but they (PAS) leaders said we were lying. Now everything has come out into the open.
“I have been made to understand that a recording of Nik Abduh’s (PAS Central Committee member Nik Mohamad Abduh Nik Abdul Aziz) speech where he mentioned that PAS had taken money from Umno, has been authenticated,” he told reporters after opening the “Car-Free Day” programme in conjunction with the Federal Territories Day 2019, here today.
The PAS president’s political secretary Syahir Sulaiman in a statement yesterday said the matter was decided after studying the court action which was filed against Rewcastle-Brown from all aspects apart from the advice of his (Abdul Hadi’s) lawyer.
He said the settlement involved Abdul Hadi withdrawing his claims against the defendant, Rewcastle-Brown, as well as the defendant withdrawing her counterclaims against the PAS president.
Abdul Hadi had filed the suit against Rewcastle-Brown at the London High Court on April 21, 2017 to seek compensation and an injunction following the publishing of an article in the website of the Sarawak Report on Aug 6, 2016, which he claimed was defamatory to him.
The eight-paragraph article had claimed that a total of RM90 million was believed to have been banked into the accounts of top PAS leaders to influence them to covertly support Umno and the Barisan Nasional, which lost in the 14th general election last May after being in power since independence in 1957.
PAS has also all along branded Umno leaders and members as “kafir” (infidels). — Bernama
