I woke up on Saturday to the pleasant and surprising news of PAS secretary-general Takiyuddin Hassan describing MCMC’s RM100,000 fine on Sin Chew over the Jalur Gemilang gaffe as a form of media bullying.

Wow! Takiyuddin’s ears must still be ringing with Abdul Hadi Awang’s pronouncement about true Islam being the future of Malaysian politics and that Islam is just to all people, not just Malays and PAS members.

Takiyuddin said the newspaper had already corrected its mistake and apologised, and that this should suffice.

He also said: “In the publishing world, these steps already constitute a ‘punishment’ due to their impact on the media’s integrity and credibility in the eyes of readers.

“As long-established media organisations that have reported on national developments for decades across governments, parties, and leaders, both Sin Chew and Sinar Harian are certainly qualified to take appropriate action according to their positions, without being treated in such an unreasonable manner.”

That’s what I told the media previously, that Sin Chew is a long-established entity that has contributed a lot to the nation and should be trusted to deal with the gaffe professionally and internally.

And now, lo and behold, Takiyuddin says the same thing. Never mind that it is several months too late, but I welcome this “new” and “gallant” perspective of the party in which I was once a member for 30 years.

Syabas Takiyuddin! Perhaps Sin Chew might consider nominating him “Malaysian of the Year” for 2025!

But what did others say?

Now, let’s look back at some of the reactions by certain personalities from different political parties.

The first, of course, is an Umno veteran calling for me to relinquish my citizenship. Why did the old fogey make such a demeaning demand? Well, as I recall, I had said I was ashamed to be a Malaysian because two Sin Chew editors were arrested over the flag gaffe.

Then, there was our former education minister Maszlee Malik, a PKR leader, who said a small apology would be insufficient for Sin Chew, a “renowned newspaper that is almost 100 years old, has more than half a million readers, a chief editor and other experienced editors”.

On another occasion, Maszlee said Malaysians who don’t know what our national flag looks like are “traitors” showing “unforgivable” ignorance.

Traitors to the nation!

Fortunately, Maszlee was much kinder when the same Jalur Gemilang gaffe was committed by his former ministry. I could not find the word “pengkhianat” in his soft reprimand of the education ministry.

Thus, given such strong reactions by politicians from PKR and Umno, it is good to finally hear the “mature”, “rational” and “compassionate” voice of the PAS secretary-general exemplifying the very best of Islamic values.

Kudos, Takiyuddin!

But wait a minute. What did PAS Youth previously say about the Sin Chew gaffe?

The other PAS view

PAS Youth chief Afnan Hamimi Taib Azamudden described the Chinese-language daily’s mistake as an affront to the nation’s sovereignty that reflected a lack of patriotism.

Afnan said the crescent moon was an important symbol in the Malaysian flag as it represented Islam as the federation’s religion, and that this was a form of treachery that cannot be forgiven so easily.

He even said the blunder could be construed as a “subtle attempt at erasing our national identity”.

Oh my, traitorous again!

But, of course, when both Umno and PAS made the same Jalur Gemilang gaffe, there was no reference to being “traitorous”.

So, my dear Malaysians, I am in a dilemma.

Which PAS are we talking about? The PAS of Takiyuddin full of compassion and Islamic tolerance, or the PAS of Afnan, which is full of venom and vengeance?

Is there a divide between the old and young in PAS, I wonder? I certainly do not like the PAS Youth reaction to the flag gaffe and prefer the elder Takiyuddin’s views on the same issue.

It seems the jury is still out as to whether PAS has Islamic gallantry or just shameful hypocrisy.

Or is this what some scholars would label as political doublespeak?

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of FMT.