KUALA LUMPUR, May 31 — It is too early to draw conclusions on the Private Member’s Bill on the Syariah Courts (Criminal Jurisdiction) (Amendment) Bill 2016, said Umno vice-president Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein.

He said this was because the bill had only gone past the first reading in the Dewan Rakyat and had to go through several other stages before it was finalised.

“Well, we have to wait and see because Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib  Razak has indicated that it has to go through Parliament first and brought up to the states and the Conference of Rulers.

“Discussions on the private member’s bill is a bit premature at the moment.

What is clear is that the Prime Minister has said it is not hudud per se, it’s a long process that we have to go through,” he told a media conference here today when asked if Umno members would support the bill.

Umno Supreme Council member Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob, meanwhile, said the bill, if passed by Parliament, would still be up to the states whether wanted to implement it or not.

The Rural and Regional Development Minister said this was because enforcement of Syariah laws was a state matter.

Speaking to reporters after attending a ceremony to present letters of offer for university places to 300 outstanding Mara sponsored students, he added that some states like Sabah and Sarawak had already stated that they were not in favour of the proposed amendments.

Meanwhile, in KOTA BARU, Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Dr Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki said the bill should be amended to empower Islam as the official religion as enshrined in the Federal Constitution.

He said the amendment had nothing to do with hudud but only to empower the Syariah Court. — Bernama