TOKYO: THERE is no need for non-Muslims to worry about the Private Member’s Bill tabled by Pas in Parliament last week, as a seven-stage process to follow it will seek to safeguard their interests.
This, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said, included deliberations at the sitting of the Council of Rulers and amendments to the Federal Constitution.
Pas president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang tabled the bill on Thursday to amend the Syariah Courts (Criminal Jurisdiction) (Amendment) 2016.
Two bills must first be passed in Parliament for the amendments to become law – one to amend the Syariah Courts (Criminal Jurisdiction) Act 1965 and the other to amend Article 76A(1) of the Federal Constitution.
While the first only needs a simple majority to pass, amending the Constitution will require a two-thirds majority from 222 Members of Parliament (MPs).
The amendments, if passed, will allow the Kelantan government to impose punishment, except the death sentence, for those convicted under Syariah laws.
The bill will only be debated in the next parliamentary sitting. Zahid who is also Barisan Nasional deputy chairman said the coalition’s leaders would be engaging those with concerns over the bill.
“There are many aspects to look at still and there is no reason for anyone to be worried.
“If anything, the plan for its implementation only covers Muslims in Kelantan,” Zahid told the Malaysian press corp covering his five-day working visit here today.
Meanwhile, commenting on the candidacy of Datin Mastura Mohd Yazid, the widow of the late Kuala Kangsar MP Datuk Wan Mohammad Khair-il Anuar Wan Ahmad, Zahid said it was never about Mastura replacing her husband’s place.
The lawyer, he said was picked out of five shortlisted candidates for her own merits and popularity among the Kuala Kangsar constituents.
Mastura, he said was not an unfamiliar face in the parliamentary constitution, as she had been engaging the locals since the late 90s when Wan Khair-il was in Umno Youth.
Mastura will be BN’s first election candidate in recent memory to be fielded without physically participating in the campaign.
Zahid said the BN election machinery would instead leverage on the other available platforms including social media during the campaign period.
Mastura who is in ‘iddah’ – the period to be observed by Muslim women after the death of her husband, is also expected to engage the voters through pre-recorded videos.
Mastura, 55, a mother of four, will face Perak Pas women’s wing chief Dr Najihatussalehah Ahmad, a 47-year-old medical doctor.
The polls is scheduled to be held simultaneously with the Sg. Besar by-election on June 18.-nst
