Dr M takes a dig at 'cheated by infidels' PAS
MalaysiaKini.com
Oct 8, 2014

Dr Mahathir Mohamad has taken a stroll down the memory lane of bitter rivalry between Umno and PAS, and recalled how the latter once condemned his party for working with non-Muslims, especially the Chinese.

He said PAS had claimed that Muslims are forbidden by their religion to work with non-Muslims, and by doing so, the Malays in Umno, had become infidels.

And PAS people, he said, believed this claim to the point that they would not even pray with those from Umno.

"They would not allow their children to marry with the children of Umno people. Some were made to marry again before joining PAS.

"Even the graves of PAS people were separated from those of Umno people while families broke up (over political differences)," he added in his blog today.

Mahathir noted that Anwar Ibrahim was successful in convincing PAS not only to work with PKR but also DAP, the biggest non-Muslim party which is against PAS’ Islamic agenda.

PAS, he said, had to conceded that without non-Muslim support, it would not be able to seize federal power.

“This put PAS in a difficult position. Because they branded Umno as infidels for working with infidels. But the fact is, PAS needed to work with infidels in order to achieve its intention of seizing federal power,” he added.

Mahathir also pointed out that while Umno’s non-Muslim partners never opposed Islam or denied Umno’s stand that Malaysia is an Islamic state, the situation was different in Pakatan Rakyat, where DAP clearly objected to PAS’ theocratic struggle.

An Arabic term to convince supporters

In the end, the former premier said PAS forgot all its accusations against Umno and in order to convince its supporters that working with infidels is not wrong, it introduced the Arabic term "tahalluf siyasi" or political cooperation.

"Malays consider Arabic as the language of the religion and whatever is mentioned in Arabic is definitely from Islam," he added.

By introducing the term "tahalluf siyasi", Mahathir said PAS solved the problem though it did no explain that the cooperation between them and DAP is no different between the cooperation between Umno, MCA and MIC.

What was also not mentioned, he added, is that unlike MCA and MIC who did not oppose Umno’s Islamic struggle, DAP was against PAS’ cause.

"And so PAS leaders and infidel leaders hug each other.

"And at the same time, the enmity with Umno was continued because Umno’s cooperation with non-Malays was not given an Arabic term," he said.

PAS, he said, is clever in using Islam and the Arabic language to make what is forbidden permissible.

"But PAS never made it to the federal level.

"In the last general election, DAP won the most seats with 38, PKR 30 and PAS only 21. Penang remained in the hands of DAP, Selangor with PKR but PAS lost Kedah.

"Indeed, PAS has been cheated by DAP. I am confident PAS members will not read this blog, they are fanatical about their leaders," he added.

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