Not voting in KKB polls ‘haram’ for PAS members, says Takiyuddin

PAS secretary-general Takiyuddin Hassan told party members at a ceramah in Ampang Pecah last night that not turning up to vote is considered ‘haram’.

HULU SELANGOR: It would be deemed “haram” if PAS members do not come out to vote in the Kuala Kubu Baharu by-election this Saturday, says the party’s secretary-general Takiyuddin Hassan.

Takiyuddin said this was not a “fatwa” but rather a directive for PAS members in the area to vote in order to secure victory for Perikatan Nasional (PN) candidate Khairul Azhari Saut.

“If Tok Guru (PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang) said it (voting) is fardu ain (an obligatory act for Muslims), then it is tantamount to being ‘haram’ if we do not carry it out,” he said during a speech at the PN ceramah in Ampang Pecah last night.

Takiyuddin said the obligation to vote was explicitly outlined in PAS’s constitution and must be strictly followed.

“The directive in the party constitution itself must be adhered to,” he said.

“Not adhering to a directive can result in disciplinary action.”

PN’s Khairul will be up against Pang Sock Tao of Pakatan Harapan, Hafizah Zainuddin of Parti Rakyat Malaysia and independent candidate Nyau Ke Xin.

The seat fell vacant following the death of three-term DAP assemblyman Lee Kee Hiong on March 21 from cancer. She was re-elected last August with a 4,119-vote majority over PN’s Henry Teoh, from Gerakan.

Polling takes place on May 11, with early voting today.