PAS reps who join Amanah should quit seats, says Hadi

PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang says today in Kedah any elected representative joining a splinter group has broken an oath. – The Malaysian Insider pic by Hasnoor Hussain, August 22, 2015.

Elected reps who won in the 2013 general election on the PAS ticket should vacate their seats if they wish to join the new party created by splinter group Gerakan Harapan Baru (GHB) or New Hope Movement.

PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang said those who joined Parti Amanah Rakyat, which is expected to be launched on Merdeka Day, should resign as elected reps for breaking an oath sworn to the Islamist party.

"It is up to their dignity. They took the Bai'ah Oath as PAS elected reps.

"They took the oath, made the promise. So they should resign and vacate their seats," he said at the PAS himpunan tolak BN (anti-Barisan Nasional) rally in Kota Sarang Semut, Kedah, this evening.

Hadi was asked to comment on the new party being planned by GHB, which is headed by progressive PAS leaders ousted in the PAS elections in June.

Amanah is also set to replace PAS, which is now controlled by the ulama faction led by Hadi, in a new opposition coalition with DAP and PKR.

According to the PAS constitution, members who joined another political party will automatically lose their memberships.

However, a number of PAS division leaders in Selangor and Malacca have announced their resignations as they crossed over to GHB.

Hadi said he did not see that as a big challenge to PAS.

"PAS had been through worse challenges before. In the 1980s, the president quit the party. Some 10 central leaders left the party.

"PAS was left with only one MP, the late Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat. We fought back and won Kelantan in 1990.

"That was more challenging than what we face now. We can bounce back. What is interesting now is youths are coming to PAS."

Hadi also denied talk that many Islamic non-governmental organisations (NGOs) have joined GHB.

"A majority of the Islamic NGOS are with us and there had been media statements made on that."

On criticism that PAS was not progressive and becoming backward, Hadi said the party has not changed its policies and goals.

"We are not a 'parti kampung' (village party). We don't just have religious scholars but also other professionals.

"Their numbers are growing. After the recent muktamar, we saw the new PAS central leadership line-up made up of ulama, lecturers, lawyers and others.

"We have more of them than before. We also got new applications for membership. So far we have 9,000 but we only managed to process some 6,000.”

On today's gathering themed “beristiqamah (consistent) until victory”, Hadi said such a programme was normal for the party to explain its policies to the grassroots after its general assembly.

- TMI