Finally, the truth is out. The 10-point may bear the signature of PM Najib, but it has no cash value. Honestly, it is a bounced check.
To be sure, it is imprinted with high face value – 10 points to be exact. This includes freedom for Christians to print and circulate the Alkitab and other indigenous Bibles in Peninsula Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak; it even threatens punishment for government officials who failed to honor the PM’s check, and much besides.
But now the PM says, whatever the face value of his personally signed check, the final decision whether the check is cash-able is up to the State Bank. Unfortunately, nine of the eleven State Banks have since long ago circulated directives which say the kind of checks that the Prime Minister gave to Christians have no cash value. Regardless, the PM assured Christians his check will be honored, especially when the Sarawak State elections was just round the corner in 2011.
To say that Christians are shocked when the check bounced would be an understatement, especially for good will Christian leaders who have put their full trust in the PM’s integrity. But given the standing directives of the State Banks, this means the Christian check bearer is left with a valueless bounced check.
As PM, Najib has all the powers to compel the State Banks to honor his check, but now in 2014 he simply asks the Christian check bearer to accept this new, ugly reality and resign himself to his cruel fate. Najib got a fantastic deal. He bought a Sarawak Vote-Bank in 2011 with his 10-point check, but the Christians only got a bounced check. Without a doubt, Malaysian Christians have been had in the Allah business transaction.
But the PM is declared to be an honorable man. After all, he insists that he has kept his word. He honors his check (that is, until the check bounced). If there is any blame at all, it lies with the State Banks. This being the case, why would Christians bother to do business with him and continue to accept his bounced checks?
Million Dollar Question – Would you accept the words of such an honorable man? Would you still accept his check?
May the Lord have mercy and give Malaysia a leader who honors his word.
Counsel for Kings from the Bible:
Proverbs 16:13: Righteous lips are the delight of a king, and he loves him who speaks what is right.
Proverbs 20:7, 11: The righteous who walks in his integrity— blessed are his children after him!
Proverbs 28:18: Whoever walks in integrity will be delivered, but he who is crooked in his ways will suddenly fall.
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The Malay Mail Online 24 Jan 2014 LINK
State, Federal Laws on ‘Allah’ Supersede 10-point Deal, PM Says
Putrajaya’s 10-point solution on the “Allah” row is still subject to existing state and federal laws, Datuk Seri Najib Razak said today, confirming his government’s hands-off approach to the ongoing debacle in Selangor.
The prime minister pointed out that laws on the usage of “Allah” differ from one state to another but noted that there are “no such enactments” in the case of Sabah and Sarawak.
“The supreme council is aware of the 10-point agreement by the government but the agreement itself is subject to federal and state laws,” he told reporters after chairing the Umno supreme council meeting this evening.
But in Sabah and Sarawak, which Najib listed as states without specific enactments to bar non-Muslim usage of the “Allah” word, faith followers there “may continue their practice as usual.”
“And no party needs to intimidate any other parties,” Najib said.
The Najib Cabinet had mooted the 10-point solution shortly before the Sarawak state election in 2011 to resolve the row over the seizure of a consignment of the Al-Kitab Bibles which contained the word “Allah” in them.
The solution allowed for bibles in Malay and indigenous languages to be printed, imported and distributed freely in Sabah and Sarawak but in the peninsular, the holy books must be stamped to indicate that they are a Christian publication.
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The Malaysian Insider 24 Jan 2014 LINK
Use of ‘Allah’ is Up to the States, says Najib by Sheridan Mayavera & Musliza Mustafa
Breaking his silence on the Allah row, Datuk Seri Najib Razak (pic) today said the 10-point solution allowing for the use of ‘Allah’ in bibles is valid for Sabah and Sarawak, and any other state that does not forbid its use among non-Muslims.
The prime minister said in all other states, the use of the word will depend on their respective enactments, such as in the case of Selangor.
Putrajaya’s stand may open the way for individual states to forbid the use of the word ‘Allah’ by non-Muslims either in worship or in their publications, taking the cue from Selangor whose Sultan issued a decree prohibiting non-Muslims from using “Allah” and 35 other Arabic terms.
Najib added that the recent statement by the Yang Di Pertuan Agong on the use of ‘Allah’, was made in the latter’s capacity as Sultan of Kedah and was only relevant to that state.
“The party supreme council members support the government’s move to uphold the sanctity of Islam and to the use of ‘Allah’,” Najib said after chairing the Umno supreme council meeting in Kuala Lumpur today.
“The council also takes note of the 10-point agreement. If the state has an Islamic enactment, they have to abide by it.
“If not, like Sabah and Sarawak, they can continue to practise as usual,” he said.
On the Yang Di Pertuan Agong Sultan Abdul Halim Mu’adzam Shah’s speech on January 19, Najib stressed that the decree was made in Kedah and not for the whole country.
The Kedah ruler last week said several words including “Allah” were the exclusive rights of Muslims, citing a 1986 decree by the National Fatwa Council on their use.
The King also said that religious sensitivity must be observed and the status of Islam as the country’s official religion must be respected.
The tussle over who gets to use ‘Allah’ has seen legal experts, religious scholars, human rights activists and politicians argue over one of the Federal Constitution’s most sacrosanct foundations – the right of every Malaysian to freely practise his or her faith.
In the 1980s, several states and their Muslim fatwa committees passed laws forbidding the use of ‘Allah’ and several Arabic terms by non-Muslims.
This includes the 1988 Selangor enactment and the 1986 decree by the National Fatwa Council.
However, these laws were not widely enforced until 2008 when the Home Ministry banned the Catholic weekly, Herald from using the term in the Bahasa Malaysia section of the publication.
The term is used by Christians who worship in Bahasa Malaysia and Iban, such as those in Sabah and Sarawak. Two thirds of Malaysia’s 2.9 million Christians are from East Malaysia.
The term ‘Allah’ has been in use for centuries in Bahasa Malaysia and Bahasa Indonesia bibles.
The Herald won a High Court decision in January 2009 that overturned the Home Ministry ban. However, the Court of Appeal then overturned that decision in 2013, saying that the word was not integral to Christianity.
While the Herald’s case was being debated in court, the Home Ministry in 2011 seized two consigments of bibles in Bahasa Malaysia and Bahasa Indonesia that were imported from Indonesia and were meant for distribution in Sabah and Sarawak.
The Najib administration at the time crafted a 10-point solution to resolve the problem and the bibles were subsequently released to their respective importers.
The 10 point-solution allows for the import and use of Bibles in all languages.
However, the JAIS raid on the BSM early this year has questioned the validity of the 10-point solution on states which have laws that expressively forbid the use of the term ‘Allah’.
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department in charge of legal matters Datuk Nancy Shukri had said that Putrajaya cannot interfere in each state’s religious matters. This includes implementing the 10-point solution.
The 10-point Solution:
1. Bibles in all languages can be imported into the country, including Bahasa Malaysia/Indonesia.
2. These Bibles can also be printed locally in Peninsula Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak. This is a new development which should be welcome by the Christian groups.
3. Bibles in indigenous languages of Sabah and Sarawak such as Iban, Kadazan¬Dusun and Lun Bawang can also be printed locally and imported.
4. For Sabah and Sarawak, in recognition of the large Christian community in these states, there are no conditions attached to the importation and local printing of the Bibles in all languages, including Bahasa Malaysia/Indonesia and indigenous languages. There is no requirement for any stamp or serial number.
5. Taking into account the interest of the larger Muslim community, for Peninsula Malaysia, Bibles in Bahasa Malaysia/Indonesia, imported or printed, must have the words “Christian Publication” and the cross sign printed on the front covers.
6. In the spirit of 1Malaysia and recognising that many people travel between Sabah and Sarawak and Peninsula Malaysia, there should be no prohibitions and restrictions for people who bring along their bibles and Christian materials on such travel.
7. A directive on the Bible has been issued by the Ketua Setiausaha (KSU) of the Home Ministry to ensure proper implementation of this cabinet decision. Failure to comply will subject the officers to disciplinary action under the General Orders. A comprehensive briefing by top officials, including the Attorney General (AG), will be given to all relevant civil servants to ensure good understanding and proper implementation of the directive.
8. For the impounded Bibles in Kuching, Gideon, the importer can collect all the 30,000 Bibles free of charge. We undertake to ensure the parties involved are reimbursed. The same offer remains available for the importer of the 5,100 Bibles in Port Kiang, which have already been collected by the Bible Society Malaysia (BSM) last week.
9. Beyond the Bible issue, the Government wishes to reiterate its commitment to work with the Christian groups and all the different religious groups in order to address inter-religious issues and work towards the fulfilment of all religious aspirations in accordance with the constitution, taking into account the other relevant laws of the country. In order to bring urgency to this work, in my capacity as the Prime Minister, I will meet the representatives of the Christian Federation of Malaysia (CFM) soon to discuss the way forward.
10. The Christian Ministers in the cabinet will meet on a regular basis with representatives of the various Christian groups in order to discuss their issues and work with the relevant Ministries and myself in order to resolve them. As the leader of this country, I wish to reiterate the Government’s commitment in solving any religious issues in this country. There is a need to manage polarities that exist in our society to achieve peace and harmony. I believe the best way to achieve this is through respect, tolerance, forgiveness and reconciliation. –
That’s Najib’s true colours. Ever since that UMNO election when he switched sides at the very last minute, he has no more integrity left. His word cannot be trusted. So we the church have now to stand up and remain faithful to our God. We will have to stand firm now that even the Prime Minister is not for all Malaysians. So the courts are no more independent, the Prime Minister has failed but our God will not fail us.
God will certainly NOT fail us Pathi Jaya … if and only if we refer to Him by His proper name and it certainly aint Allah….
How wrong you are jv, Allah IS His name and it is a general name for him, derived generically from ‘al-ilah’ . In the OT His proper name is Yahweh. The detractors here have not shone any overwhelmingly convincing proof why Malaysian Christians should be exempted and banned from using Allah when Christians everywhere else have been are are still freely using this word where it IS used!
Especially when we have already been using ‘Allah’ here in the peninsular multiple since centuries ago.
Well, I expected our current PM will fail to honour in his duties/pledges in view of his weak leadership, doubt talk and tip-toeing strategies in all his policies. I have to state that our current christian cabinet ministers are also at fault and or the same when their kept their silence or indifference attitudes toward their Allah stand together with our fellow believers. I sincerely pray and hope that these fellow brethen will take note of their inaction and failure in upholding our christian faith. May I remind them that our God is a jealous God and they will meet Him on the judgement seat of Christ.