Nik Aziz: PAS has not changed tack on Islam, Malays
KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 20 — Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat has denied allegations that PAS had abandoned its principles following its move yesterday to prioritise the dominant Islamic race in the country — Malays.
Nik Aziz claimed yesterday that the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) coalition partner had never forsaken Malay rights and that it was Umno’s economic policies which had caused division and unequal distribution among the various races in Malaysia.
Utusan Malaysia today launched an all-out assault against PAS, with headlines on its front page titled “Nik Aziz ubah nada” (Nik Aziz changes tack.).
The Umno-owned daily claimed that Nik Aziz had finally “come to his senses” and PAS had changed its stance of being inclusive to all races to prioritising the Malay race.
“I did not change my views. This is a lie. What I said yesterday was that Malays needed to be prioritised in PAS’s agenda because they were the first race to embrace Islam.
“Seeing as PAS fights for Islam, who should it prioritise if not the Malays?” Nik Aziz told reporters today.
Utusan also quoted Kulim-Bandar Baharu MP Zulkifli Noordin, who told Nik Aziz to refer to the teachings of Prophet Muhammad SAW to “understand” that Malays should be prioritised.
The daily had also quoted Nik Aziz as saying that Malays needed to be “prioritised” as they were bumiputeras.
“PAS prioritises Malays because they were the first race in this country who became Muslims.
“Zulkifli Noordin is the sort of person who has maggots in his veins,” said Nik Aziz.
The Kelantan mentri besar claimed that many Malays in the country had strayed from the Islamic path and said that that was also why PAS was focusing its energy on attracting Malay support.
“All these accusations affect me, my struggle, followers especially those who have just begun to befriend PAS,” he added.
The convention, dubbed “Konvensyen Nasional Pengupayaan Bangsa” (National Race Empowerment Convention) is seen as PAS’s attempt to attract Malay voter support which has been on the decline in recent years.
PR has seen a decline in Malay support since July 2009, when a by-election in the 99 per cent Malay seat of Manek Urai, Kelantan saw a previous 1,352-vote majority in the PAS stronghold drop to a wafer-thin 65.
Malays continued to swing towards Barisan Nasional (BN) in subsequent polls, from around seven to 10 per cent, allowing the ruling coalition to grab Hulu Selangor and Galas from PR.
The most recent by-election in Tenang, Johor, saw PR fail to make any headway among the mainly Felda Malays as BN swept over 83 per cent of Malay votes to increase its majority by over 1,200 votes.
Nik Aziz claimed yesterday that the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) coalition partner had never forsaken Malay rights and that it was Umno’s economic policies which had caused division and unequal distribution among the various races in Malaysia.
Utusan Malaysia today launched an all-out assault against PAS, with headlines on its front page titled “Nik Aziz ubah nada” (Nik Aziz changes tack.).
The Umno-owned daily claimed that Nik Aziz had finally “come to his senses” and PAS had changed its stance of being inclusive to all races to prioritising the Malay race.
“I did not change my views. This is a lie. What I said yesterday was that Malays needed to be prioritised in PAS’s agenda because they were the first race to embrace Islam.
“Seeing as PAS fights for Islam, who should it prioritise if not the Malays?” Nik Aziz told reporters today.
Utusan also quoted Kulim-Bandar Baharu MP Zulkifli Noordin, who told Nik Aziz to refer to the teachings of Prophet Muhammad SAW to “understand” that Malays should be prioritised.
The daily had also quoted Nik Aziz as saying that Malays needed to be “prioritised” as they were bumiputeras.
“PAS prioritises Malays because they were the first race in this country who became Muslims.
“Zulkifli Noordin is the sort of person who has maggots in his veins,” said Nik Aziz.
The Kelantan mentri besar claimed that many Malays in the country had strayed from the Islamic path and said that that was also why PAS was focusing its energy on attracting Malay support.
“All these accusations affect me, my struggle, followers especially those who have just begun to befriend PAS,” he added.
The convention, dubbed “Konvensyen Nasional Pengupayaan Bangsa” (National Race Empowerment Convention) is seen as PAS’s attempt to attract Malay voter support which has been on the decline in recent years.
PR has seen a decline in Malay support since July 2009, when a by-election in the 99 per cent Malay seat of Manek Urai, Kelantan saw a previous 1,352-vote majority in the PAS stronghold drop to a wafer-thin 65.
Malays continued to swing towards Barisan Nasional (BN) in subsequent polls, from around seven to 10 per cent, allowing the ruling coalition to grab Hulu Selangor and Galas from PR.
The most recent by-election in Tenang, Johor, saw PR fail to make any headway among the mainly Felda Malays as BN swept over 83 per cent of Malay votes to increase its majority by over 1,200 votes.
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