POLITICAL activist and lawyer Latheefa Koya has come under fire for insinuating that it is sheer hypocrisy to treat former finance minister Tun Daim Zainuddin who passed away yesterday (Nov 13) morning badly when he was alive but put aside all the differences to praise and acknowledge his contribution after he has gone forever.
“One is tired of this hypocritical phenomenon of Malaysian politics,” penned the former Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief commissioner (the first woman to be assume the coveted post) in a social media post.
One is tired of this hypocritical phenomenon of M’sian politics. When someone is alive, they hound him and throw mud at him. When he dies, those who are from the same bloc that hounded him suddenly say nice things and express regrets on twitter, fb etc. Its a M’sian disease that…
— Latheefa Koya (@LatheefaKoya) November 13, 2024
“When someone is alive, they hound him and throw mud at him. When he dies, those who are from the same bloc that hounded him suddenly say nice things and express regrets on Twitter, FB (Facebook), etc.
“It’s a Malaysian disease that infects the political class especially. The dishonesty makes one sick to the stomach.”
However, Muslim commenters, in particular, begged to differ with the former PKR member given “to say good things about the dead is taught by the Prophet”.
“We’re not washing away his crimes. It’s either that or keep silence. While we do that, his crimes are being addressed by the Court,” a netizen put it plainly.
Leading the tribute for the late Daim was Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim who sent a condolences message from Lima, Peru where he was attending the APEC 2024 Sumit that “the government recognised his service and contribution to the country, especially when he was the finance minister”.
In May of last year, Daim Zainuddin was investigated for alleged corruption related to RM2.3 billion, following revelations in the Pandora Papers.
In January of this year, he was also charged for failing to declare 71 assets, including luxury cars and properties. Daim had claimed that the charges are politically motivated, alleging persecution by the current government.
Recently, his attempt to have his criminal charges moved to another Sessions Court was rejected.
Dismissing hypocrisy, another commenter reminded Latheefa that what is happening currently is not revenge “as claimed by you and the Atuk (twice former premier Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad)”, hence she should refrain from any “blame game”.
A few commenters shared the Quranic verse of the right etiquette of praising the deceased while others expressed surprise that Latheefa is oblivious to such decency.
Another commenter hinted that Latheefa’s claim of hypocrisy is politically motivated as she could have felt indebted to Dr Mahathir who “hand-picked” her as the MACC head honcho during his second premiership stint. After all, both Dr Mahathir and Daim are deemed ‘close buddies’.
To answer her critics, the co-founder of Lawyers for Liberty defended her stand that “it’s not consistent with the teachings of Islam to pour mud on someone’s head when they are alive and then hypocritically lavish praise on them when they have passed on”.
“Some will say it’s adab (etiquette) and Islam to do so. Let me be clear. It’s fake, it’s not the truth. Islam is about truth,” she added. – Nov 14, 2024
2. Some will say it is adab & Islam to do so. Let me be clear. It’s not consistent with the teachings of Islam to pour mud on someone’s head when they are alive & then hypocritically lavish praise on them when they have passed on. It’s fake, it’s not the truth. Islam is about…
— Latheefa Koya (@LatheefaKoya) November 13, 2024
Main image credit: Bernama
