Terengganu Amanah joins calls for PAS to explain out-of-court settlement with Rewcastle Brown

MARANG, 20 Jan -- Timbalan Menteri Perumahan dan Kerajaan Tempatan Datuk Raja Kamarul Bahrin Shah Raja Ahmad Baharuddin Shah pada sidang media pada Bicara Profesional anjuran Majlis Pengetua Sekolah Malaysia Negeri Terengganu di Akademi Bomba dan Penyelamat Wilayah Timur, Wakaf Tapai hari ini. -- fotoBERNAMA (2019) HAK CIPTA TERPELIHARA

PETALING JAYA: The PAS leadership must give a full explanation why it opted for an out-of-court settlement with Sarawak Report editor Clare Rewcastle Brown over the defamation suit, says Terengganu Parti Amanah Nasional (Amanah) chairman Datuk Raja Kamarul Bahrin Shah.

Raja Kamarul Bahrin said the Islamist party owed its supporters some explanations following a recent revelation by party member Muhammad Atiullah Othman, who alleged that he was among 40 people who witnessed PAS central committee member Nik Abduh Nik Abdul Aziz talk about receiving RM2mil from Umno.

“I sympathised with them as many PAS supporters are loyal and dedicated to their leadership. The revelation will add to their disappointment against the party leadership who had previously denied receiving money from Umno and instead ask them to donate more than RM3mil to defend the dignity of the party,” he said.

Atiullah, in a Facebook post on Feb 4, said: “On the day of the incident, I was right in front of Nik Abduh. No one was between us. Nik Abduh pointed his finger in my direction (when responding) in anger at Zaharuddin Muhammad who protested ‘taking Umno money’.”

A purported audio recording of Nik Abduh talking about the money has circulated on social media.

PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang sued Rewcastle Brown for libel over an article she published on Aug 6, 2016, alleging the party received RM90mil in bribes from Umno.

She filed a counterclaim in October 2017. But on Friday (Feb 1), the case was settled out of court.

Raja Kamarul Bahrin said some former PAS leaders, including himself, had once raised the issue of the Umno-PAS relationship involving money but they were criticised, removed from leadership and labelled traitors.

“With this out-of-court settlement without the Sarawak Report article being retracted, in addition to Atiullah’s revelation regarding the donation, who is the real traitor?” he asked.

“PAS top leadership must give detail explanation on the out-of-court settlement against Sarawak Report and the allegations made by Atiullah,” he said.