PAS MP and PKR MP lock horns

'Allah' controversy: PAS MP vs PKR MP

PAS parliamentarian Khalid Samad and his PKR counterpart Zulkifli Noordin have locked horns over the high court ruling on the 'Allah' issue.

Speaking to Malaysiakini today, Khalid (right), who is the Shah Alam MP, accused the Kulim Bandar Baru MP of possessing an "Umno-like mentality".

He said Zulkifli, a practicing syariah lawyer, should streamline his opinion with the stand of his party, which has welcomed the decision.

"He has to decide what party he is in," stressed the PAS leader.

"If he is an Umno leader, he should follow Umno's stand as clarified by (its president) Najib Abdul Razak. If he's in PKR, then he should follow the party's stand," he added.

Zulkifli (left) could not be reached for comment.

Khalid was responding to a posting in Zulkifli's blog yesterday which called on the former to quit the Islamic-based PAS and join the Chinese-dominated DAP for backing the court decision.

Defending himself, the PAS MP said the term 'Allah' was widely used by non-Muslims during the era of Prophet Muhammad and therefore this should not be an issue now.

"What differentiates the term is the trinity concept (in Christianity) and the singular nature of Allah in Islam," he added.

PKR: An excellent development

Meanwhile, PKR has expressed support for the court decision to allow the Christian publication Herald Weekly to use 'Allah' to describe God in its Malay-language section.

According to the party's religious affairs division head Muhd Nur Manuty, the decision was made after a careful study of the matter.

"We are of the view that the wish of non-Muslims to use Allah to describe God is an excellent development and should be accepted with an open heart.

"Therefore, there is no need for the Muslim community in Malaysia to overreact or fear that their religion is under threat," he was quoted as saying in a report.

Najib yesterday also urged Muslims to remain calm and not "heat up" the situation by holding demonstrations and so forth.

The prime minister added that the Home Ministry will file an appeal over the decision.

The Herald, which is printed in four languages, has been using the word 'Allah' as a translation for 'God' in its Malay-language section, but the government argued that 'Allah' should be used only by Muslims.

The term 'Allah' is widely used among indigenous Christian tribes in Sabah and Sarawak, many of whom speak Bahasa Malaysia.

The high court decision had also sparked outrage among several Muslim groups, who had threatened to hold a major protest against the ruling.

In a related development, PAS will call a special meeting tonight at its headquarters in Kuala Lumpur to discuss the court ruling.

The party is expected to give its final say on the issue after the meeting.

According to PAS secretary-general Mustafa Ali, the party's central committee members will also be invited.