Inspired by PAS, Hanipa calculates the 'DAP threat'

Inspired by PAS, Hanipa calculates the 'DAP threat'

RK Anand
Published: Nov 3, 2024 6:55 PM


Mohamed Hanipa Maidin felt inspired after reading PAS’ illuminating Deepavali message, which spoke of the triumph of light and truth over darkness and falsehood.

Armed with nothing more than simple arithmetic, the former law minister attempted to calculate the purported threat to the status quo in Malaysia in the form of DAP.

The problem he attempted to solve was simple:

How can DAP with a handful of elected representatives holding cabinet portfolios undermine the position of the Malays and Islam, which are enshrined in the Federal Constitution?

“I was stumped. I could not find an answer,” Hanipa confided in Malaysiakini.

“The Malays constitute the largest ethnic group. Their population is more than the Chinese and Indians combined.

“So the math of fear-mongering does not add up. There was just one conclusion. The concept is hogwash,” he said.

Hanipa then tackled the dwindling birthrate among the Chinese and Indians.

Ethnic Chinese and Indians make up less than 30pct of Malaysia’s population

“Including this factor into the equation proves that there is no threat to the existing framework in the foreseeable future either.

“One or two media statements or a couple of foreign flags do not amount to an existential threat. That is hyperbolic rhetoric,” he added.

‘When emotions take the wheel…’

Responding to a question on DAP’s critics often citing the Setapak Declaration to assert their point of view, Hanipa described this as turning a molehill into a mountain.

“The Setapak Declaration was drafted in 1967. It was a tool crafted for that particular time to win votes, nothing more. Didn’t PAS change its ‘Islamic state’ to ‘welfare state’ for the same objective?” he asked.

“Furthermore, the declaration did not prevent PAS from working with DAP, not once but twice. I don’t remember PAS leaders raising it then,” he added.


Hanipa, who is with Amanah, asked if there has been a DAP leader who declared that he or she aims to amend the Federal Constitution to dilute the status of the Malays and Islam.

“For the sake of argument, even if there are those who desire to do so, how will this nefarious agenda be achieved without commanding a two-thirds majority in the Dewan Rakyat?

“Are we suggesting that DAP’s Malay-Muslim allies would vote in favour of these amendments as well?

“When emotions take over the wheel and logic takes a backseat, even a rope would appear like a snake,” he said.

Therefore, Hanipa urged PAS to heed its own Deepavali message and dispel the darkness of divisive politics of race and religion.

“While its Deepavali message urging all quarters to continuously position and harmonise Malaysia’s rich diversity of religions, beliefs and cultures within the national framework and landscape may be lauded, the party’s commitment to translating such beautiful messages into concrete action always remains in doubt.

“It is axiomatic that PAS and its parochial and myopic politics work in tandem. While Islam is supposed to carry a message of mercy to all mankind and embrace and respect cultural diversity and religious plurality, PAS’ version of Islam seems to be inimical to such plurality,” he added.


Credible opposition needed

For the nation to progress and prosper, Hanipa said Malaysians must break free from the mental shackles crafted by politicians and pressure their leaders to address real threats in order to ensure a better Malaysia for all.

“We need an opposition that holds the government accountable. We need an opposition that speaks for all Malaysians regardless of colour or creed.

“We need a credible opposition that talks facts, not an opposition that tells incredible tales. Or we would forever be, in the words of former premier Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, a nation of first-world infrastructure but with a third-world mentality,” he cautioned.

In its Deepavali message, PAS secretary-general Takiyuddin Hassan said the party hopes that all Malaysians would seek truth and justice “instead of being swayed by emotions, sentiments, or extreme, exaggerated behaviours and deceitfulness, given their inherently destructive nature”.