GEORGE TOWN: DAP lawmaker Jeff Ooi Chuan Aun yesterday said the party had remained skeptical about the Pas Islamic splinter group, Gerakan Harapan Baru (GHB), as the movement has yet to declare its stand on the hudud law.
The outspoken Jelutong member of parliament said he would continue to monitor the movement's development, which is expected it to be registered as a new political party before the October parliamentary sitting.
Ooi declined to commit an outright support for GHB, saying DAP had opted for a "wait-and-see" approach to GHB's highly publicised liberated stance in the Islamic penal code.
"I will reserve my comment until GHB makes a stand to ensure hudud implementation is postponed.
"We want to ensure that hudud is not GHB's priority and DAP is holding out for now and will wait for the new party's constitution to be finalised," he told a press conference at his Jelutong service centre here yesterday.
Meanwhile, Ooi said GHB should adhere to the common policy framework by DAP and Parti Keadilan Rakyat prior to a cooperation among them.
Asked if DAP would only accept GHB on the condition that it adopts a softer stand in hudud, Ooi said DAP had hoped that would be the case.
"We will keep an open mind and hold our breath until the GHB comes out with its formal party constitution," he said.
Ooi said the split in Pas would be a drastic political change and the emerging GHB as the new party would be able to improve the country's economy and governance.
It was reported that GHB's Penang pro-tem committee chairman Datuk Dr Mujahid Yusof Rawa said the movement's approach to politics would be pragmatic, all-inclusive and democratic.
Mujahid said the movement's members, comprising mainly the progressive faction, were ready to face the music and be booted from Pas.