‘Declare war against deviant teachings’

(Bernama) - An all-out war must be carried out against deviant teachings as they could divide the Muslims and go against the teachings of the Sunnah Wal Jamaah, which is practiced by Muslims in Malaysia.

The Syiah ideology which originated from the Middle East not only went against the faith but could also destroy the country due to the differences in religious practices.

The ideology had already been declared as ‘haram’ or forbidden by the National Fatwa Council at a special discussion or ‘muzakarah’ in 1996 and must be addressed aggressively by the authorities and the Islamic Religious Council as it clearly threatened the Muslims’ faith, thus affecting solidarity among Muslims in the country.

Strongly upholding the Sunnah Wal Jamaah, independent preacher Mohd Fikri Che Hussain said Umno, as the largest Malay and bumiputera political party championing the Islamic cause, must act quickly to check the Syiah ideology.

“As is the case in countries like Syria, the Syiah proponents are embroiled in civil wars because of the differing ideologies between the Syiah and ‘Ahlul Sunnah’. Thus, before the situation gets out of hand, the government must take stern action,” he told Bernama.

The fact is that there are 81 deviationist groups that were actively operating throughout the country.

According to the chairman of the Ahli Sunnah Wal Jamaah Organisation Malaysia, Abu Syafiq Mohd Rasyiq Mohd Alwi, five of the groups were the Syiah, al-Arqam, Hizbut Tahrir, Wahabi and Tarikat Naqshabandi teachings.

Mohd Fikri said the Islamic education system in schools and the universities must be strengthened and streamlined by focusing on their faith so that the future generation would not be easily influenced and deceived by deviationist teachings.

“The threat from the Syiah will only be apparent in countries which did not take action to suppress its influence,” he said.

Actually there are advantages and disadvantages in the proposal to define Islam according to the practice adopted by the ‘Ahli Sunnah Wal Jamaah’ in this country.

The head of the Muslim Transformation Bureau, Malay Consultative Council, Mohamed Ghazali Md Noor conceded that the proposal was good but required in-depth discussions and must be studied in detail in a wide context.

“Islamic bodies in the country such as the Islamic Development Department Malaysia (Jakim) and other non-governmental organisations must be proactive and effective in carrying out such efforts, besides tightening enforcement,” he said.

Former PAS deputy president Nasharudin Mat Isa believed the proposal was a good move but there must be follow-up action too.

Acknowledging that Islam was facing major challenges that not only involved the Syiah teachings, but also the demands of the non-governmental organisations (NGOs) which were hiding behind human rights movements, Mohd Fikri wanted the government to be more sensitive to the current environment.

“The younger generation nowadays are seen to be keen to be closer to religion. What is feared is that they get involved in deviationist teachings and went against the teachings of the Sunnah. Thus, the government must look into this development,” he added.