10
news without borders
Statements on Islamic issues:
Get Sultan’s consent
first: Raja Nazrin
IPOH: Raja Muda of Perak Raja
Nazrin Shah has reminded the
mentri besar, state executive
councillors and state Islamic
Religious Affairs Department
(JAIP) director not to make any
statement on Islamic issues without
obtaining the consent of Sultan
Azlan Shah.
Raja Nazrin said yesterday any
Islamic religious matter must first
be referred to him as head of the
Perak Islamic Religious and Malay
Customs Council (MAIAMP) and
then presented to the Sultan for
consent before any statement could
be issued on the matter.
The Raja Muda also reminded
them to refer to MAIAMP any matter
which came under the jurisdiction
of the Perak Sultan, to be presented
to the Sultan for consent before any
public or media statement could be
issued on the matter.
Raja Nazrin also stressed that
besides the fatwa (edicts) issued
by the National Fatwa Council,
the initial process of considering,
deciding on and issuing any
fatwa must also be referred to the
Conference of Malay Rulers for
consent.
“What is happening now is that
there is another forum known as
the Muzakarah Jawatankuasa
Fatwa (Fatwa Consultative
Committee), which had made an
announcement on a fatwa without
first referring it to the Conference
of Rulers.
“This situation, if not corrected,
can cause confusion among
Muslims,” he said at the 164th
Conference of MAIAMP here.
At the same time, Raja Nazrin
said, it must also be reminded
that the Islamic Development
Department Malaysia (Jakim)
did not have the legal power to
give administrative directives
to any state Islamic religious
administration.
“To maintain harmonious
relations, it is important that
the jurisdiction of the respective
religious committees and
departments, as well as the
position, power, privileges and
sovereignty of the Malay Rulers as
provided for in the federal and state
constitutions be understood and
respected,” he said.
Raja Nazrin also said mosques
should be free of partisan politics
that could divide the people.
– Bernama
Newborn left in shrine ...
A housewife who frequently offers prayers at a shrine in Taman Green in Penang got a shock
Give up yesterday when she found a newborn girl wrapped in three layers of cloth inside the covered
mother shrine. The woman immediately called the authorities and the baby, with her umbilical cord
tongue still attached, was taken to the Penang Hospital. It is learnt that the newborn could have been
premature due to her small size and was probably only a few hours old.
in school:
Khoo
pg 12 More youths are sniffing glue
KUALA LUMPUR: More rural youths,
especially those in Felda schemes, and the
urban poor are turning to glue sniffing,
alcohol consumption and smoking to cope
with the daily pressures, according to an
eminent addiction psychiatrist.
The trend was worrying as it was
very injurious to the health because this
addiction, in the long run, would cause
extensive damage to the brain, lungs and
kidney, Prof Dr Mohamad Hussain Habil of
University Malaya Medical Centre said.
He said although heroin was still the
number one scourge, nevertheless the trend
of glue sniffing, alcohol consumption and
smoking was on the rise.
He told Bernama that studies had shown
that these youngsters started their habit
from as early as 10 years and it became
pronounced when they reached their late
teens.
theSun | WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 10 2008
He said it was very vital for parents to
detect early symptoms as these addictions
could be overcome with proper medication
in the initial stages.
Parents should look out for signs, such as
sudden withdrawal from socialising, lonely
behaviour, being violent for no apparent
reason and playing truant.
Mohamad said drugs such as vernicline
or champiq were used to treat such patients.
M
The drug helped to reduce the craving
and, coupled with proper counselling and tu
parental support, the addiction could be
controlled, he said, adding the treatment
last for about three months.
Mohamad, who has also done studies on
heroin addiction in the country, said glue
sniffing, alcohol and smoking addictions
would spread faster as these were cheaper
alternatives and easily available in village
sundry shops and stalls.
Perak DAP to recruit
more non-Chinese
by Humayun Kabir
newsdesk@thesundaily.com
IPOH: Perak DAP plans to triple the number of
branches in the state from 56 to 150 by 2010 by
recruiting more non-Chinese as members.
Its secretary, Nga Kor Ming, said yesterday
DAP had previously concentrated on certain
areas like Kinta Valley and Taiping but the party
now intends to branch out into all nine districts in
the state and increase membership from 5,000
to 20,000 by 2010.
“We are going on a membership drive to
recruit more non-Chinese into the party. At
present we have three party branches of Malays
in Taiping, Bruas and Manjung. These members
are former Umno members who crossed over.
“We have also formed three party branches
consisting of orang asli in Sungai Siput and
we hope to recruit more orang asli in other
areas.”
Nga said they also hoped to get male mem-
bers to encourage their spouses, children and
friends to join the party.
He was speaking at a media conference at
state party headquarters here after announcing
the list of 35 candidates for the election of 15
party state committee members on Sunday.
The committee members will then select the
top state leaders among themselves.
Seventeen of the 35 state candidates are in-
cumbents including state chairman Datuk Ngeh
Koo Ham, deputy state chairman M. Kulasegaran,
state treasurer Chen Fook Chye, Nga and deputy
secretary A. Sivasubramaniam .
Party stalwart Lim Kit Siang is expected to
open the Ordinary DAP Perak Convention to be
held at Heritage Hotel on Sunday.