KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 28 — The Penang government has denied PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang’s claims that Malays and Muslims in the state were being sidelined and that their interests were not being looked after.
News portal Malaysiakini quoted state religious exco member Abdul Malik Kassim as saying that many policies implemented under the current administration had benefited Malays, and that it was much better than Barisan Nasional’s (BN) efforts.
“The fact is that Islam will continue to prosper in Penang under the Pakatan Harapan administration, led by DAP and PKR.
“The Malays and Islam will continue to be defended in Penang,” the Batu Maung assemblyman reportedly said.
Hadi had reportedly said yesterday that one of the reasons why PAS did not want to work with DAP was because the latter had allegedly failed to uphold the interests of the Malays and Muslims in Penang.
In response to this, Malik added the state government’s plans to build Penang’s first 14-storey Islamic Hospital which is slated to begin construction in March and expected to be completed within three years.
“The budget for religious affairs, for example, had at one point reached 300 per cent more than the allocation during times when Penang was under the administration of Gerakan, an Umno ally.
“At the time Gerakan leaders had openly condemned the state’s administration, particularly the DAP, for allocating a much larger sum for religious affairs,” he said in pointing out the difference between DAP and Gerakan’s rule in Penang.
Malik also said that religious schools have continued to receive assistance based on the state’s financial capability, and that there is a special allocation for Islamic education schools on top of the annual allocation.
“As of now, more than RM14 million have been allocated for the purpose. In fact, all teachers and staff of the institutions this year also received a special bonus,” he explained.
