Global Courant
JITRA, Malaysia – Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has refuted claims by certain parties that he was trying to excessively apply Islamic concepts in his government as he sought to expand the role of the Islamic Development Department of Malaysia (Jakim).
According to a report by the Bernama news agency, the prime minister said allegations leveled at him by a small number of non-Muslims showed that the group failed to see the importance of educating Muslims about the true concept of the religion.
“I want Jakim to not just talk about religion and Islamic law. Jakim, now under my administration as Prime Minister and Government of National Unity, will be expanding his duties, talking about economic issues, looking at digital programs and looking at the education curriculum.
“The responsibility is broader so that the values of Islam can be applied, and that is objected to by those who do not understand, a small group of non-Muslims who write that ‘Anwar is now displaying his strong Islamist stance, which he has trying to hide all along by ordering Jakim to check all systems.’”
Mr Anwar made the remarks during his speech at the diamond jubilee celebrations of a religious school in the northern Malaysian city of Kodiang on Saturday, Bernama said.
Mr Anwar explained that if Muslims in Malaysia fail to gain a proper understanding of Islamic teachings, it is feared that this could lead to clashes between communities.
“I want to thank my non-Muslim friends for their support, but they also need to understand that if Muslims have superficial knowledge (in Islam), they tend to punish; if their attitude is cruel and callous and does not make people attracted and interested in Islam, then our future will be more chaotic in terms of fighting, clashes between communities,” he said, according to the Bernama report .
He also said that during the seven months he ruled the country, his government never received any opposition from non-Muslims, instead they only inquired about the efforts the government wanted to make.
Meanwhile, Mr Anwar also welcomed religious scholars and teachers to voice their views on the government, but reminded them not to get carried away by the politics of division.
“So if they want to protect Islam, there are many things they can criticize me about and I can accept; (they) can criticize the government, I can also accept it, but I do not allow slander.
“There is an opinion that if you do not belong to a particular party then you are not a member of Ahli Sunnah Waljamaah; is not that dangerous?
“Religious scholars should say something, we should not be obsessed with the party that is above all,” he said. THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
