Lokman Adam asks Hadi why he wants to ban media reporting Tahfiz sexual assaults

Focus Malaysia:

Lokman Adam asks Hadi why he wants to ban media reporting Tahfiz sexual assaults

UMNO communications director Datuk Lokman Noor Adam asked PAS president Tan Sri Hadi Awang what he was trying to say when he condemned the media for reporting freely on sexual assaults of students in religious institutions.

He said Hadi has no reason to criticise the media for reporting on such cases involving religious men, saying it is extremely unfair of the PAS leader to do so.

According to him, the media is doing its duty to report the truth, and the parties involved do not need to be prejudiced.

“I am surprised when a high-ranking person in a political party who claims to fight for Islam can give the view that the media is used to magnify the news about the case of misconduct in religious schools.

“What are you saying, Hadi? Do you know that lately, from 2023-2024, there have been several cases of serious misconduct by teachers who hold the title of ustaz?

“Do you know the serious offence that is meant? Among the reported offences, there are cases of obscenity, sexual abuse, (sex) outside of nature. Do you see these offences as light and should not be made public?” he asked in a Facebook live session last night (May 31).

Moreover, Lokman revealed police statistics that showed 188 students were victims of sexual crimes in the state of Kelantan in 2021 to 2023.

He mentioned that the youngest victim was nine years old. Additionally, there were 254 cases of minor rape offences between 2021 and 2023.

Therefore, Lokman advised Hadi to accept the situation openly and instruct the PAS state government leadership to find the best way to solve the recurring issues, especially in the state of Kelantan.

On May 28, in his article titled “Islam is the target of defamation, here PAS is the first target”, Hadi said that the media is used as a weapon to tarnish the face of Islam and anyone associated with Islam.

“Cases involving sexual misconduct revealed by the media not only involve Muslim religious groups but also happen to other religions,” Lokman further added. – June 1, 2024