“If the government won’t table it, then Marang MP (Hadi) will,” said Selangor PAS commissioner Iskandar Abdul Samad.
“The proposed amendments were, after all, originally brought to the Dewan Rakyat as a private member’s bill.”
He told FMT that come what may, PAS, as an Islamist party, was responsible for continuing efforts to strengthen the Shariah Court’s punitive powers by amending the Shariah Courts (Criminal Jurisdiction) Act 1965 (Act 355).
BN chairman Najib Razak yesterday surprised many when he announced that the government would not adopt Hadi’s bill, following strong objections from most Barisan Nasional coalition partners.
“Thus the bill will continue to be a private member’s bill and it will be up to the speaker to decide.
“If the speaker decides to allow it, then it will be tabled,” Najib, who is also the prime minister, said after the coalition’s supreme council meeting at the Putra World Trade Centre last night.
The decision came two weeks after Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi was reported as saying that BN itself would table a bill to amend Act 355 in the current Dewan Rakyat sitting, even if it risked losing some “friends”.
The “friends” Zahid was referring to are believed to be BN’s other component parties – MIC, MCA and Gerakan – who had objected to the proposed amendments.
Responding to this, Iskandar said Najib’s decision proved that Umno’s position in BN was under challenge.
“It also displays Umno’s flip-flop attitude, and how it is in its weakest position since the formation of BN.”
PAS information chief Nasrudin Hasan echoed this, saying it had never been an issue as to who would table the amendments in the Dewan Rakyat.
“The (current) situation is (Hadi’s bill) remains in its original format,” he said in a statement today.
“PAS MPs have since the beginning been placed on a standby mode to face the possibility of debates in Parliament.”
The most important objective for PAS was that Act 355 be amended, said Nasrudin.
He also questioned those who claimed BN’s decision proved that PAS was being “peed on”, or played by Umno.
“Once again, PAS’ political enemies were quick to attack us, saying PAS has become a victim of Umno and BN’s game. I don’t know, which one is true?
“If PAS tables (the Act 355 amendments), they will say ‘PAS is a tool of Umno and BN, why didn’t BN itself table it in Parliament? Didn’t Umno support (Hadi’s bill)? Then BN should table it, not PAS.'”
He said such reactions were evident among PAS’ enemies when Zahid announced the government’s plan to take over Hadi’s bill.
“Apparently PAS was peed on by Umno. To them (PAS’ opponents), nothing is right,” the Temerloh MP added.
But no matter what, PAS’ stand would not change, and it would continue to fight proudly for the amendments, he said.
Hadi’s bill was first tabled in the Dewan Rakyat in May 2016. In November, Hadi amended his bill by proposing that caps on the Shariah Court’s punishments increase to 30 years’ jail, a fine of up to RM100,000 and up to 100 strokes of the cane.
Shariah criminal punishment is currently limited to three years’ prison, RM5,000 fine and six strokes of the cane.
Hadi’s bill received strong support from several top Umno leaders, including Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department in charge of Islamic Affairs, Jamil Khir Baharom, who participated in PAS’ Act 355 rally last month.