SHAH ALAM: PAS president Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang urges PAS members to remain loyal to the leadership appointed by the central leadership, following the recent administrative conflict in Perlis.
He said the PAS central leadership, elected and appointed through the party’s Annual General Assembly (Muktamar), holds the authority to administer and make appointments at all levels.
“PAS central leadership has appointed the Perlis State PAS Commissioner from among members of the Syura Ulama Council, the cleanest and highest authority within PAS,” he said in an open letter to Perlis PAS members on Feb 11.
Last Saturday, PAS spiritual leader Datuk Hashim Jasin claimed that internal issues within PAS Perlis, particularly those involving former mentri besar Mohd Shukri Ramli, could have been resolved earlier had the central leadership intervened sooner.
Hashim said he had reported matters he considered inappropriate in Perlis to the party’s central leadership, including the PAS president, but the follow-up action he had hoped for did not materialise.
Mohd Shukri resigned as mentri besar on Dec 25 last year due to health reasons, following reports that eight Perikatan Nasional (PN) assemblymen, including three from PAS, had signed statutory declarations (SDs) withdrawing their support for him.
The three PAS assemblymen involved were Saad Seman (Chuping), Fakhrul Anwar Ismail (Bintong) and Mohd Ridzuan Hashim (Guar Sanji).
The PAS Syura Ulama Council was later reported to have accepted applications for re-admission from the three former Perlis assemblymen, which would be forwarded to PAS secretary-general Datuk Seri Takiyuddin Hassan for consideration by the central leadership.
Elaborating further, Abdul Hadi said the Syura Ulama Council is responsible for ensuring that the party’s highest policies are aligned with the Quran and Sunnah, while administrative matters fall under the jurisdiction of PAS Central, as long as they do not contradict those core principles.
“This is in accordance with Article 8(1) of the PAS Constitution, under which the council is elected and appointed by the PAS Central Working Committee, PAS Ulama Wing, PAS Youth Wing and PAS Muslimat Wing, with additional members appointed by the Syura Council itself.
“Therefore, the Syura Ulama Council has no role in administration unless it contradicts the party’s highest principles,” he said.
Abdul Hadi stressed that the party had conducted fact-finding investigations into complaints from Perlis since the early stages following the state election victory.
He said several central PAS representatives were dispatched to Perlis to conduct investigations, while PAS divisional leaders were invited to the party headquarters to present their grievances in person.
“Meetings with PAS divisional leaders at the party headquarters revealed attitudes inconsistent with the characteristics of disciplined, well-trained members of an Islamic party.
“Some openly expressed dissatisfaction with party decisions and the state leadership, including claims that they were more deserving of positions they were not appointed to,” he said.
Abdul Hadi further claimed there were reports of unethical lobbying during party meetings, which he said could undermine internal unity and disrupt the administration of the state government.
He added that some members failed to understand the challenges faced by a newly formed state government, as well as the limitations of state authority in resolving certain issues.
He said these developments culminated in support for what he described as acts of betrayal to topple the PAS-led government and hand it over to other parties, reflecting a lack of solidarity and loyalty.
“In conclusion, our confidence in the appointed PAS commissioner remains extremely high. What occurred was a failure to demonstrate loyalty to the party and obedience to leaders appointed by the PAS central leadership, without valid justification,” Abdul Hadi said.
