Thousands wrongfully 'Islamised' by NRD cannot be ignored: PCS
Published on: Wednesday, June 28, 2017
Kota Kinabalu: While the alleged 400 conversion cases in the country are a cause for concern, that of thousands in Sabah who have been wrongly "Islamised" by the National Registration Department (NRD) cannot be ignored, said Parti Cinta Sabah.Supporting the statement by political activist Zainnal Ajamain, PCS Information Chief Ramdi Indang said for far too long, the department responsible for registering and producing MyKads had been given the power to put "Islam" in the religion column without consulting the applicants."This had caused a lot of grievances to non-Muslims especially in rural areas. They would be forced to go up and down and through the maze of bureaucracy just to prove they are not Muslims.ADVERTISEMENT "Many times they would be forced to go through the 'right channel' namely through Shariah Court where their case is filed under 'conversion case' when actually, it is not," he said. Ramdi recalled a recent case of a 73-year-old man in Nabawan whose new MyKad bore the word "Islam" despite never having converted to Islam.The problem not only aggrieved the elderly man, it also almost prevented his son from getting married in church after the department's branch in Kuching told the young man he could not marry in church because of his father's religion. "The old man, Andimam Sinayung had to go to the newspaper to highlight his problem, thanks to NGO Perpaduan Anak Negeri (PAN). ADVERTISEMENT The department's official initially told him to refer to Sabah Islamic Council (MUIS) to resolve the problem."Nobody said anything but it was resolved by the department after just a few weeks.
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This meant the department knew it fouled-up. Instead of publicly admitting it, they corrected their mistake quietly," he said. "This is a classic case of the department's apparent negligence." Furthermore, Ramdi added it is absurd that a learned man like the Centre for Human Rights Research and Advocacy (Centhra) CEO Azril Mohd Amin to consider the 400 cases as a national threat while ignoring the NRD's mistakes that disrupt the peace and harmony of the people in Sabah and Sarawak.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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"We in Sabah and Sarawak are broadminded and open to one another because that is how we have been raised by our parents. But some people are trying to drive a wedge between us by playing up religious issues. "Since Centhra is a research institute, he could start a study on how NRD could eliminate this problem," he said. - Tracy Patrick