SEPANG:A Selangor member of parliament is on the receiving end of a royal rebuke for opposing a religious body under the purview of the palace.
Sultan of Selangor Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah (pic) yesterday lashed out at Shah Alam’s Pas MPKhalid Samad for demanding the removal of the executive power of the Selangor Islamic Religious Council (Mais).
Describing the MP’s demand as “jahil” (extreme ignorance), “biadap” (insolent) and akin to challenging the powers of the ruler, Sultan Sharafuddin, who is also the state’s supreme head of Islam, said Khalid was ignorant of the importance of Mais’ role.
“This is not the first time Khalid has questioned issues related to Mais’ executive powers and the Selangor Islamic Religion Administration Enactment, which Khalid considers to be outdated.
“It is as if Khalid had chosen to challenge and be insolent to me, the state’s head of Islam, who receives advice from Mais.
“Khalid’s statement revealed that he is ignorant of Mais’ role which, under the state constitution, acts as an adviser to assist the sultan in his duties as the supreme head of Islam in Selangor,” said the sultan in his speech at the opening of the Pekan Sepang Mosque here.
Sultan Sharafuddin also reminded Khalid that he was not “a true son of Selangor”, but was given the opportunity to become an MP in Selangor. As such, Khalid should have equipped himself with an in-depth knowledge of Selangor’s history, state constitution and the Selangor Islamic Religion Administration Enactment.
Khalid was born in Kota Baru, Kelantan, in 1957.
On June 18, Khalid had demanded that the Selangor government reduce Mais’ executive powers in light of several controversial raids, including its refusal to return 321 Malay-language Bibles which contained the word “Allah”, that were originally seized in January from the Bible Society of Malaysia.
The sultan also told Khalid to mind his words when discussing issues related to the sultan’s role and Mais in Islamic affairs.
“I am deeply saddened that there are politicians and professionals, who are Muslims, but do not protect the sanctity of Islam from being manipulated by certain parties.
“Instead, they prioritise political agendas and personal interest by confusing the people and daring to question the powers of an Islamic institution, such as Mais, which has been ensuring the sanctity of Islam and governing Islamic affairs in Selangor.
“Politicians should be more responsible in issuing statements to ensure the sanctity of Islam and the preservation of unity of Muslims in this country is protected.”
Sultan Sharafuddin said Mais and the state Islamic Affairs Department (Jais) had always guaranteed the rights and freedom of people from other faiths to practise their religion.
“Mais respects non-Muslims in their religious practices, as accorded by the Federal Constitution.
“All actions taken by Mais and Jais are to preserve the sanctity of Islam without harassing the believers of other faiths.”
The sultan reminded the people not to use mosques or surau as political arenas, as places of worship were meant for Muslims to meet and foster camaraderie.
“Do not slander, defame, accuse one another and make up false stories that will arouse suspicions and trigger hostility among Muslims. That will result in losses for our future generations.”
Sultan Sharafuddin also called for Malays to be united for the sake of Islam.
“Disunity among Malays will be disadvantageous to Malays. Malays must unite and strengthen our race and Islam so that the religion will not be belittled.”
Sultan Sharafuddin also expressed regret at the emergence of religious extremists, liberalists and pluralists, whom, he said, would adversely affect the Islamic faith and Muslims in the future.
“I am referring to those religious extremists who carry out acts of violence without restraint and the liberals who adopted (and supported) the lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders (LGBT) culture.”
Sultan Sharafuddin said, as for the pluralists, they believed that Islam and other religions were one and the same.
“We have to recognise that Islam is placed on a higher position in
the country, a Federal religion as enshrined in the Federal Constitution.
“Hence, all parties should ensure the Muslim faith is preserved and protected.
“It is my sincere wish that the citizens of Selangor practise a moderate form of Islam, which follows the ideology of Ahli Sunnah Wal Jamaah .”
