KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 29 — Pahang mufti Datuk Seri Dr Abdul Rahman Osman said DAP should apologise for meddling in Islam after it criticised the state’s religious authority over a sermon saying it was against Islam to join the federal opposition party.
Abdul Rahman also rejected DAP’s demand for an apology over the sermon read during Aidiladha last week and the party’s threat of legal action unless the religious reading was retracted.
“We will not bow down to parties who want this department to apologise and withdraw the Aidiladha sermon content,” he was quoted as saying by Utusan Malaysia today, referring to the Pahang Islamic Religious Department (JAIP).
“Rightfully, it is they who should be apologising firstly for meddling in Islam related affairs such as the implementation of hudud in Kelantan,” Abdul Rahman told the Malay-language daily.
Defending the contents of the sermon, Abdul Rahman explained that it was only aimed at urging Muslims to be united despite differing political ideologies to avoid disunity among those of the same faith.
He said the surah or verse in the sermon tells Muslims not to side with “kafirs (infidels) over fellow Muslims.
“The content of the Aidiladha sermon is not seditious as claimed by the DAP, but we merely want to preach and explain to the other Muslims about things that are already stated in the Quran,” he added.
Last week, DAP leaders demanded an apology from JAIP for claiming in its Aidiladha sermon on Thursday that it was against Islam to join the party.
Pahang DAP chairman Tengku Zulpuri Shah Raja Puji said they will give JAIP five days to apologise, failing which, legal action will be taken.
In the script issued by the Pahang Mufti Department on Thursday, it was written that the Malays in the country were divided by political parties such as Umno, PAS, PKR and the Gerakan Harapan Baru (now Parti Amanah Negara).
The script also said this was exacerbated by Malays joining the DAP, which it claimed was against Islam.
