KOTA KINABALU, Nov 4 — Sabah Pakatan Harapan chairman Datuk Mustapha Sakmud has reminded political parties not to exploit religious sentiment as a weapon to challenge opponents’ strategies, following remarks linking parliamentary democracy as an institution to an end-times figure.
The Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Sabah and Sarawak Affairs) expressed regret over a statement by PAS president Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang, who was alleged to have likened the Confidence and Supply Agreement (CSA) approach to “Dajjal” (literally the Deceitful Messiah), stressing that such a label was highly unfamiliar and could confuse Muslims in Sabah.
“When political arguments are no longer sufficient, must end-times terminology be turned into a weapon? The CSA can be debated rationally within the framework of parliamentary democracy without resorting to religious sentiment to discredit those with differing views,” he said in a statement yesterday.
