HALIMEY: PH CAN CHAMPION ISLAM, TOO
Not fair for some to claim only they can do so, says Seri Setia candidate
PAKATAN Harapan’s Seri Setia by-election candidate, Halimey Abu Bakar, believes the rights to champion and empower Islam in Malaysia do not belong to a sole party.
PH, he said, was also capable of empowering Islam, thus making the party’s struggles a holistic one for society.
Halimey said it would not be fair for some quarters to claim that they were the only ones qualified to speak about Islam, including during the by-election’s campaign.
“They (the opposition) must understand that the one with more authority on the subject is the government, which is chosen by the people to handle all matters, including those pertaining to religion.
“PH has never once sidelined Islam.
“Instead, the government has undertaken positive steps for this purpose.
“For example, the monthly allowances for teachers of AlQuran and Fardu Ain classes (Kafa) have been increased to RM1,500.
“The maintenance allocations for Kafa schools have been maintained, in line with each school’s needs,” he said yesterday.
Halimey said PH remained focused on its aim to serve the people and religion.
“PH, via state governments, proved this by providing large allocations for welfare efforts by continuing projects and programmes.
“For example, since 2015, the Selangor government under PH built 25 new mosques in the state and allocated RM208.8 million to the Selangor Islamic Religious Department (Jais) to construct and maintain mosques in the state. Not to mention the RM16 million allocated to the state government to build three tahfiz schools and RM25 million to build two Maahad Integrasi Tahfiz Sains in Pandan and Bagan Lalang.”
Halimey said he planned to establish “Rumah Ngaji” (Quran reading classes) in all flats in the Seri Setia constituency to encourage the habit of reciting the Quran.
“Programmes with proven effectiveness, such as food bank initiatives carried out by mosques, will be expanded to the whole constituency,” he said.
The Seri Setia by-election on Sept 8 will see Halimey take on Pas candidate Dr Halimah Ali.
The Seri Setia seat fell vacant after its incumbent, Professor Dr Shaharuddin Badaruddin, died of cancer on Aug 2.