SHAH ALAM: Police have been urged to actively monitor religious talks by Muslim preachers in Selangor to ensure that their views do not contain elements that could possibly disrupt social harmony.
Selangor Wadah Percerdasan Umat Malaysia (Wadah), an NGO registered under the Selangor
Islamic Religious Council (Mais), said the matter should not be viewed lightly, especially in the wake of the arrest of an NGO president who recently spoke out against the Sultan of Johor Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar.
Malaysia Ahli Sunnah Waljamaah Organisation president (Aswaja) Zamihan Mat Zin had spoken out against a decree by the Sultan concerning the issue of a Muslim-only launderette in Johor.
Commenting on the issue, Wadah chairman Nik Mohd Yusoff Nik Ismail said the issue Zamihan chose to address was unnecessary, and that his conduct was un-Islamic.
“He clearly overreacted when speaking on the subject of the Muslim-only laundrette. Zamihan's approach during the talk need not to be celebrated. We are not okay with his approach and it wasn't sensible.
“That is certainly not the way we should preach in the mosque. Whether it was done on purpose or otherwise, his attitude and approach was disrespectful. Islam is loving and tolerant of other religions and races.
“Muslims are not angry people. His talk should be harmonious and he should tell people what Islam is all about so that the religion's good values could be followed by others. Zamihan's talk could have revolved around issues such as corruption, safety and halal issues,” said Nik Mohd Yusoff.
He was met after lodging a police report at the Section 6 police station today.
Earlier, Mais chairman Datuk Mohamad Adzib Mohd Isa said the Selangor Islamic Religious Department (Jais) has been instructed to conduct an in-depth investigation on the matter.
Adzib said Zamihan's views during his talk did not reflect the stance of either Mais or Jais, and said the investigations will be in accordance with the Credentials Regulations (Selangor state) 2008.
Zamihan was arrested at the Dang Wangi district police headquarters on Wednesday at 3.50pm.
In a video uploaded on YouTube, Zamihan, had said that it was not right of a sultan, as the head of Islam in a state, to issue such a decree.
When the video went viral, Zamihan subsequently denied criticising the Johor ruler, but issued an apology nevertheless.
Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Mohamad Fuzi Harun had reportedly said an investigation paper had been opened under Section 4 of the Sedition Act 1948.
Police yesterday obtained a two-day remand order against Zamihan to facilitate investigation