SHAH ALAM: Former Pas members of Parliament from Shah Alam and Kota Raja are paying kifarah (compensation) for breaking bai'ah (oath of allegiance) by leaving Pas to join Parti Amanah Rakyat (Amanah).
Shah Alam MP Khalid Samad said he and Kota Raja MP Dr Siti Mariah Mahmud would be serving food to the poor at Dewan Merbau in Section 17, here, tomorrow (Sept 4) to redeem their oath of loyalty to Pas.
“We will be serving food to the poor starting from 8pm at Dewan Merbau in Seksyen 17, tomorrow.
“We welcome the underprivileged community members around Klang and Shah Alam to come,” he said, adding that nasi beriyani with mutton would be served during the dinner.
Khalid and Dr Siti Mariah are among the first Pas leaders who announced their intention of leaving the Islamist party once the new party, now known as Amanah (previously Gerakan Harapan Baru) is formed.
The issue of Pas members breaking bai'ah has been hotly debated especially for Pas members in Kelantan who pledged a 'bai'ah talak tiga', which states that should a member ever leave the party and join another, they would automatically be divorced from their spouse.
In Islam, a talak tiga divorce means there is no possibility of reconciliation unless the wife marries another man and the new husband later divorces her willingly.
Religious leaders, meanwhile, have varied takes on whether the bai'ah is valid.
Some said taklik (conditional divorce) is acceptable and enforceable if one breaches the condition when making the taklik while others said Pas members who undertook the bai'ah could be absolved of the oath if they fulfilled one of two conditions: provide food to at least 10 people from the hardcore poor category or fast for three days.
On another matter, Khalid said Amanah has not received any formal invitation from PKR and DAP to form a new coalition so far.
"Not yet. We have not received any formal invitation to form a new coalition or Pakatan 2.0 as Amanah will only be officially launched on Sept 16," he said in a press conference, here.
Asked if Pas was welcomed to join the new coalition, Khalid said he had no problem Pas being a part of the new coalition but the Islamist party must abide by the common policy framework and observe decisions made during meetings.
"It is important for everyone to be on the same page, instead of agreeing or saying nothing during meetings and eventually coming up with different interpretations and decisions," he said.