The Mind of PAS President
COVID 19: WHY SHORT PARLIAMENTARY SESSION IS NOT ALLOWED
I am intrigued by those who cross the limit with their belief in democracy with far greater intensity than their adherence to Islamic precepts.
Allah SWT does not force His servants to carry out the precepts of religion which are the things necessary for human life in accordance with His guidance. However, in the case of having no other possible option in order to continue or extend the lifespan in this world to the world of the Hereafter, Allah SWT grants concession and facilities in many things called rukhsah. Thus, the worship of Allah SWT can be postponed or alleviated in the event of a life-threatening situation.
This shows how Allah, the Most Just and the All-Wise, is very sympathetic to His servants who truly embraces the concepts of Islam as Rahmatan Lil ‘Aalamin.
Allah SWT bestows His blessings in matters of Islamic precepts such as prayer, pilgrimage and fasting in the month of Ramadan which can be delayed under strenuous circumstances.
However, humans should not delay in carrying out the commandments of Allah due to their lustful desire, even though they claim it is the concept of Rahmatan Lil ‘Aalamin. This is especially true when the human is hungry for power to the extent of overstepping the humanitarian boundary and the law that is driven by mere desire remains unchanged.
This is why Allah SWT trained Prophet Adam AS, the father of all mankind, who had once been tempted by the cursed devil so that the story can serve as a lesson to the descendants of Adam and Eve AS.
Allah SWT said:
﴿فَوَسۡوَسَ إِلَيۡهِ ٱلشَّيۡطَٰنُ قَالَ يَٰٓـَٔادَمُ هَلۡ أَدُلُّكَ عَلَىٰ شَجَرَةِ ٱلۡخُلۡدِ وَمُلۡكٖ لَّا يَبۡلَىٰ١٢٠ فَأَكَلَا مِنۡهَا فَبَدَتۡ لَهُمَا سَوۡءَٰتُهُمَا وَطَفِقَا يَخۡصِفَانِ عَلَيۡهِمَا مِن وَرَقِ ٱلۡجَنَّةِۚ وَعَصَىٰٓ ءَادَمُ رَبَّهُۥ فَغَوَىٰ١٢١﴾
“But Satan whispered evil to him: he said, “O Adam! Shall I lead thee to the Tree of Eternity and to a kingdom that never decays?” (120); In the result, they both ate of the tree, and so their nakedness appeared to them: they began to sew together, for their covering, leaves from the Garden: Thus did Adam disobey His Lord, and allow himself to be seduced (121).” (Surah Taha: 120-121)
Allah SWT trained Adam and Eve AS by exposing the nature of how men succumb to their desire to the extent of shutting out their intellect for they were too eager to live forever and have everlasting power.
Eventually, Adam and Eve were seduced by the chief of the devil, Iblis whom had been introduced to them and warned against by Allah, and they were shown how different he was from the noble angels because of his evil nature. It was also shown to Adam AS the complete submission that the angels had shown to Allah.
Adam and Eve AS were punished by Allah SWT until they were stripped of their clothes in the heaven and driven to Earth, a predestined place by Allah to human beings. Consequently, Adam and Eve AS regretted and repented their actions as narrated through the word of Allah:
﴿قَالَا رَبَّنَا ظَلَمۡنَآ أَنفُسَنَا وَإِن لَّمۡ تَغۡفِرۡ لَنَا وَتَرۡحَمۡنَا لَنَكُونَنَّ مِنَ ٱلۡخَٰسِرِينَ٢٣﴾
“They said: “Our Lord! We have wronged our own souls: if Thou forgive us not and bestow not upon us Thy mercy we shall certainly be lost.” (Surah al-A’raf: 23)
On the other hand, Iblis who is the chief of the devil did not repent because of his arrogant and stubborn nature.
In the face of Covid-19 outbreak that occurrs worldwide, although I have no medical knowledge, I fully trust the medical experts that warn about this outbreak through the issuance of several directives.
I continue to obey the commands of the Movement Control Order (MCO) and its prohibitions, even though I was accused of being a coward and doubting the predestinations of Allah SWT.
Caliph Umar bin al-Khattab RA had also been thrown the same accusation for cancelling his visit to Syria during the most notorious plague outbreak in history. Saidina Umar RA’s decision to set a quarantine in measure to safeguard lives is an obligatory duty. In fact, the biggest sin is committing suicide and taking the lives of other people without proper reason.
What drew my attention to those that supports democracy based on the foundation of Ancient Greek struggle is when they chant the Latin slogan which is ‘vox populi, vox dei’ (the voice of the people is the voice of God), or in the malay-modified version ‘the voice of the people is a sacred voice’.
Some of the externally funded media misuse their sacredness to deceive the people by operating without any boundary in order to achieve victory, using democracy as a platform until the victory become fragile and raw. As an analogy, it is like eagerly picking a fruit that is still unripe which results in it being wasted. Unfortunately, they were arguing over opening the unripe fruit and then scolded other people after finding out that is is not yet ripe.
This was the fate of the country during the 14th General Election and the succeeding situation post-election until the country had to be rescued because of the juvenile victory that resulted in a never-ending crisis that had plagued the people.
The step to protect the country was taken amicably and the responsibility has thus intensified as a result of Covid-19 outbreak that inflicted the rest of the world.
Let us all be in one boat for the boat will sink if left abandoned including those who differ in opinions. If the measure to save the country is delayed for the sake of following their desire for democracy, only Allah SWT knows what will happen.
Now the whole world is in a state of emergency due to Covid-19 outbreak. Every country thus sees the duty of safeguarding human lives in facing the danger of Covid-19 outbreak take precedence over every other matter.
Islam emphasizes the need for tafaqquh (understanding) in guiding human lives with the complete Shariah and to be able to solve problems throughout the ages. Therefore, it is necessary to introduce Fiqh Muwazanat (Fiqh of Balances), Fiqh Ma’alat (Fiqh of Implications) and Fiqh Aulawiyyat (Fiqh of Priorities).
Some people had referred to the government as a coward because the Parliamentary session was shortened without repealing it. There were also questions about why there was no appointment of deputy prime minister along with several other questions. This action is an indication that their spirit of democracy is far superior to that of the ancient Greek.
We are also witnessing the effect of the US President’s reckless valor in facing Covid-19 when economic interests take priority over any other interests. Their greediness is similar to that of rodents that die in its own food for excessive consumption. This causes the superpower to face a very dire consequence which is evident from the number of its infected cases and death toll.
Prophet Muhammad SAW advised his people:
مَثَلُ الْقَائِمِ عَلَى حُدُودِ اللَّهِ وَالْوَاقِعِ فِيهَا كَمَثَلِ قَوْمٍ اسْتَهَمُوا عَلَى سَفِينَةٍ، فَأَصَابَ بَعْضُهُمْ أَعْلاَهَا وَبَعْضُهُمْ أَسْفَلَهَا، فَكَانَ الَّذِينَ فِي أَسْفَلِهَا إِذَا اسْتَقَوْا مِنَ الْمَاءِ مَرُّوا عَلَى مَنْ فَوْقَهُمْ فَقَالُوا لَوْ أَنَّا خَرَقْنَا فِي نَصِيبِنَا خَرْقًا، وَلَمْ نُؤْذِ مَنْ فَوْقَنَا. فَإِنْ يَتْرُكُوهُمْ وَمَا أَرَادُوا هَلَكُوا جَمِيعًا، وَإِنْ أَخَذُوا عَلَى أَيْدِيهِمْ نَجَوْا وَنَجَوْا جَمِيعًا. (رواه البخاري)
“The example of the person abiding by Allah’s order and restrictions in comparison to those who violate them is like the example of those persons who drew lots for their seats in a boat. Some of them got seats in the upper part, and the others in the lower. When the latter needed water, they had to go up to bring water (and that troubled the others), so they said, ‘Let us make a hole in our share of the ship (and get water) saving those who are above us from troubling them. So, if the people in the upper part left the others do what they had suggested, all the people of the ship would be destroyed, but if they prevented them, both parties would be safe.” (Narrated by al-Bukhari 2493)
Caliph Uthman bin ‘Affan RA asserted:
إِنَّ اللهَ لَيَزِعُ بِالسُّلْطَانِ مَا لَا يَزِعُ بِالْقُرْآنِ
“There are cases where Allah allows the government to take any precautions or actions that are not mentioned in the Quran.” (Riwayat Ibn Kathir in his book of Tafsir, Book. 5, pg. 111)
The cases referred above are allowed in accordance with the knowledge of Siyasah Syar’iyyah in the implementation of certain laws including in the matters where there are no excerpts from the Quran or hadith.
In the wake of the plague outbreak in the land of Syria that killed thousands of companions and tabiin RA including Abu Ubaidah RA who served as the Governor of Syria, Amir al-Mukminin Umar bin al-Khattab RA appointed ‘Amar bin al-‘Aas RA and ordered him to implement a quarantine order that led the people to move to hills and valleys.
All of a sudden, one of the companions, Abu Wathilah al-Huzali RA dismissed the order with harsh words, “You are stupider than my donkey”, because he knew that he converted to Islam earlier than ‘Amar bin al-‘Aas.
Then, ‘Amar bin al-‘Aas replied, “By Allah, I do not want to answer to it and I still do not allow anyone to leave their home.” Finally, the outbreak were contained and overcome. Caliph Umar RA praised the actions of ‘Amar bin al-’Aas RA and assigned him to be the ruler in Egypt.
Let us face our qiblah towards Bayt al-Haram in Mecca, not the White House in Washington. Put aside those that forget that the lives they lead is not limited to only this world. As a result, they do not care about the dangers that the people may face without effective preventive measures and treatment which are the duty of anyone who rules.
ABDUL HADI AWANG
PAS President
Date: 3 Syawwal 1441 / 26th May 2020
