Ask Hadi why he didn’t object to territorial sea law, Samsuri told

Marang MP Abdul Hadi Awang (right) is president of PAS while Terengganu menteri besar Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar is a vice-president. (Bernama pic)

PETALING JAYA: Terengganu menteri besar Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar has been urged to ask Marang MP Abdul Hadi Awang why he did not protest against the Territorial Sea Act when it was debated in Parliament in 2012.

Federal government spokesman Fahmi Fadzil said the Terengganu state government’s decision to reject the law through a motion at the state assembly yesterday was viewed as a cynical and hypocritical act, Bernama reported.

Fahmi said no Terengganu MPs from PAS had objected to the bill when it was tabled, debated and passed in the Dewan Rakyat.

He said he had checked the Hansard (the parliamentary records) on the Dewan Rakyat proceedings on April 18, 2012, when the Territorial Sea Bill was tabled, debated and passed.

“During the debate session, which took about two or three hours, there were 21 MPs who participated in the debate. “But not a single MP from Terengganu, especially from PAS, including the Marang MP, was involved in the debate at that time,” Fahmi said after an event in Padang Besar today.

Hadi, who is in his seventh term as Marang MP, is president of PAS, while Samsuri is one of three vice-presidents.

Fahmi said several PAS MPs who did participate in the debate were from Kelantan and not Terengganu.

“Don’t be a hypocrite, the menteri besar of Terengganu needs to ask the Marang MP why when this bill was debated, he kept his silence and if his issue was about power, then why was not a single thing done in the 33 months of PAS being involved in the federal government in Putrajaya,” Fahmi said.

Fahmi said Samsuri should discuss with the federal government, especially Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, for a solution to the matter.

Yesterday, the Terengganu state assembly unanimously passed a motion to reject the Territorial Sea Act, on the grounds that it infringed on the state’s rights to explore resources and generate revenue within its maritime borders.