KUALA LUMPUR, May 3 — Putrajaya ceasing its fight to stop a registered Muslim from leaving the faith before the Sarawak election will prompt others to use polls opportunistically, Perkasa claimed today.
Perkasa information chief Hassan Basri Muhammad questioned the timing of the government's decision to drop its appeal against the Dayak Bidayuh just days before polling, claiming such a decision threatened Islam's position as the religion of the federation.
"If an application for apostasy is so easily exchanged for ballot paper, it is not impossible there will be more in coming elections.
"Do not trade Islam just to gain votes," Hassan said in a statement.
The Perkasa leader said that while he respected the Sarawak High Court's decision in granting Roneey Rebit's application to revert from Islam to Christianity, he said that the government should also respect the right of the National Registration Department (NRD) and the Sarawak Shariah court to appeal the decision.
"Perkasa hopes that the NRD and the Shariah courts defend the current rules (on apostasy) and do not bow down to political pressure in making a decision,” he said, adding that apostasy was a major issue in Islam.
Incumbent Sarawak Chief Minister Tan Sri Adenan Satem announced that the NRD will discontinue the appeal against Roneey’s court victory yesterday, just four days before the May 7 election.
The case had sullied Adenan’s pledge to defend Sarawakians’ freedom of faith, one of his more popular policies that led to an 81 per cent approval ratings going into his first election since succeeding Tun Abdul Taib Mahmud.
Roneey’s case made national headlines on March 24, when the Kuching High Court recognised his constitutional right as an adult to choose his religion and ordered the NRD to issue him a new Mykad.
The NRD chose to appeal the decision despite the Sarawak Islamic Religious Department and the Sarawak Islamic Council, who were named in Roneey’s legal challenge, not objecting to formally releasing the Bidayuh man from Islam.
The Sarawak NRD said today it will apply to withdraw its appeal against Roneey's case.
