PAS has decried the six-month suspension of its Gunung Semanggol state assemblyman Razman Zakaria from attending the Perak state assembly as “a political revenge ploy by Pakatan Harapan (PH) that is backed by UMNO”.
What is more disappointing is that the action was meted out despite the Perak PAS state commissioner having publicly apologised to the House over an “an information error”, according to the Islamist party’s information chief Fadhli Shaari.
“The issue stems from Razman’s speech which raised concerns over the flying of China flags in Teluk Intan (during a cultural event on Aug 24 last year),” penned Fadhli who is also the Pasir Mas MP in a Facebook post.
“He (Razman) referred to a legitimate police report and not a mere fabrication. The video recording which lasted more than two hours went viral with a police report filed by a local community activist.
“Unfortunately, Razman’s determination to urge the authorities to investigate the matter was seen as a major wrongdoing by the state government.”
For the record, Razman’s suspension came into effect today (April 16) following a motion tabled by DAP’s Bercham assemblyman Ong Boon Piow who accused Razman of making slanderous and racially charged remarks during the previous sitting.
The motion which was seconded by UMNO’s Rungkup assemblyman Datuk Shahrul Zaman Yahya was endorsed after the majority of Perak State Assembly members supported the motion which upheld findings of the Rights and Privileges Committee.
Additionally, Fadhli also expressed surprise that Razman was also accused of having linked two Madani government assemblymen to the event even though “their photos were displayed on the event’s official banner”.
“Ironically, the photos were never designed by Razman but was displayed by the organisers themselves with one of the video recordings of the event uploaded via official account of the Pasir Berdamar state assemblyman before it was deleted,” revealed the PAS lawmaker.
“Why was it deleted if there was no connection? Why was there no legal suit against the organisers for allegedly misused their photos? Shouldn’t this question also be answered?”
Fadhli was further saddened that the suspension of Razman who is also the Perak state Opposition leader could not have been successful without the cooperation of UMNO representatives in the Perak coalition government.
“This is proof that in the greed to maintain power, principles are pushed aside,” he lamented.
“UMNO which once chanted the slogan ‘Religion, Race and Nation’ is now willing to conspire to suppress voices defending the issue of national sovereignty.
“Isn’t this the clearest proof that PH and its political allies are now making the august Perak State Assembly a place to silence the truth instead of celebrating democracy?” – April 16, 2025
Main image credit: DPPK Jelutong/Facebook
