KUALA LUMPUR: Machang MP Wan Ahmad Fayhsal calls for all state Veterinary Services Department (DVS) to be re-educated on how to deal with stray animals.
He said the recent death of a stray dog named Kopi, who was allegedly shot by local council representatives from the Terengganu DVS, had undermined Islamic teachings.
“Our former religious affairs minister Datuk Dr Zulkifli Mohamed al-Bakri previously said that catching wild animals and letting them starve is a sin then what more is killing them without the proper procedure or justification.
“It is a very elaborate argument from the Islamic legal point of view with many other Islamic scholars having echoed similar sentiments before.
“The recent public demonstration against this issue has affected the image of Islam as we don't have any good defence to justify why DVS was treating stray animals the way they do,” he said in a press conference at parliament on Wednesday (Nov 13).
To this, Wan Ahmad recommended that Islamic departments in every state give guidance and counselling to all local governments and authorities on the morals of how to manage stray animals.
“This is not a political issue, it's just a lack of knowledge.
“These officers and representatives must be taught when and how to deal with stray animals in an appropriate way that doesn't cause them to suffer based on Islamic teachings,” he added.
This comes after over 100 representatives from various animal welfare associations marched to the gates of Parliament to demand justice and rights for Kopi and other stray animals on Tuesday (Nov 12).
