PKR deputy president Mohd Azmin Ali is keeping mum on PAS’ decision not to disclose details of its ‘hudud bill’ until it has been tabled.
 
He said he wants to wait until he hears from PAS at the Pakatan Rakyat Presidential Council meeting on Sunday first before making any conclusions on the matter.
 
“I do not want to make any conclusions at present. We will listen to their presentation on Sunday before we can make any comment,” Azmin (right) told reporters at a press conference today.
 
PAS is seeking to amend Kelantan’s Syariah Criminal Code II Enactment 1993 and push a private member’s bill in Parliament that would enable the implementation of hudud law in the state.
 
However, Kelantan Menteri Besar Ahmad Yaakob was reported by The Malay Mail Online saying that DAP and PKR will only see the proposed amendments when it is tabled.
 
This is despite PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim’s call on PAS to disclose the proposal at the Sunday meeting.
 
“It is possible, we are ready to disclose but they will have to wait as it is still under embargo.
 
“The amendments have to first be officially passed at the Kelantan state assembly sitting,” he was quoted as saying in the report published earlier today.
 
However, Ahmad reportedly said the changes are only minor updates to the existing enactment, which will remain fundamentally unchanged.
 
State councillor issue being ironed out

On another matter, Azmin who is also the Selangor menteri besar, dismissed reports that the state DAP is unhappy with local councillor appointments allocated to the party.
 
“We have had a series of discussions at the state level. In fact last week, I met representatives of DAP and PAS under Pakatan Rakyat Selangor.
 
“We discussed at length about councillor, village chief, community leader, and other positions in Selangor.
 
“I strongly believe that we will (come to an) understanding between the three parties. We will come up with an amicable solution and perhaps resolve that issue,” he said.
 
He said this when asked to respond to a China Press report on Jan 26, which quoted unnamed PKR sources claiming that DAP is disappointed after Azmin reneged on his promise to allocate 20 more councillor positions to DAP.
 
The promise was purportedly made due to “political considerations”, when DAP demanded PKR to concede the positions in wake of the former’s failed bid to win over the deputy speaker post in November last year.
 
However, the report claimed that ultimately, no concession was made to DAP.
 
Stoking race 'will not help Selangor'

Meanwhile, on the violent protests against the Datum Jelatek mixed development project, Azmin said he is prepared to hear any objections as long as they are not race-based.
 
“I will not condone them. I want to give a clear message to all Selangorians and all Malaysians: There is no space for extremism, fanaticism and racism in Selangor.
 
“I want to develop Selangor for the people of Selangor, and we will defend those who need housing,” he said.
 
About 1,000 people came to the protest on Jan 25 claiming that only ethnic Chinese can afford to buy luxury condominium units that are part of the project, and that this would drive out the “100 percent Malay” community.
 
Some of the protesters broke into the project site armed with sticks and metal rods, while the Selangor State Development Corporation (PKNS) later said it had received overwhelming interest from prospective Bumiputera buyers for the condominiums.
 
Azmin added that while he is will to hear constructive suggestions, stoking racial sentiments would not help Selangor or Malaysia’s development.
 
When asked, he said PKNS and he have already had several meetings with the local residents and representatives from local mosques and suraus about the development.