KOTA KINABALU: Whatever may be said about the row over the word “Allah” in Malaysia, in Sabah the controversy has elicited a heartening response from the people.
Muslims have joined Christians in the state in support of their use of the word they both use for God, noted former Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Tham Nyip Shen.
He emphasized this remarkable spirit of tolerance when he applauded Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Seri Panglima Yahya Hussin for showing Malaysian leaders in the peninsula that the people of Sabah are united with one voice when it comes to the Almighty.
“This type of outlook will guarantee continued peace and harmony among the multi-racial, multi-religious people of Sabah,” the now retired politician said in a statement yesterday.
“I am sure such a statement by a government leader is fully appreciated by the people of Sabah,” Tham added.
Yahya was reported Wednesday as saying that it did not matter to him that non-Muslims were using the word ‘Allah” in their worship.
He said the belligerent stance “by others” was not a civilised or enlightened way of dealing with such things.
Tham said that for the state No. 2 leader to say that it was no big deal if Christians in the state used the word “Allah” to refer to their God should inspire both Christians and Muslims elsewhere to grasp the idea that rising religious tensions that are founded on such issues are absurd.
The former DCM also supported Yahya, his former colleague in the state cabinet, in urging the people in Peninsular Malaysia to emulate Sabahan Muslims who do not take offence if non-Muslims use the word “Tuhan” or “Allah” in calling “God” in their worship.
“This brave and open statement should be supported by all the other Sabah Cabinet Ministers,” he said.
Tham said that there were other more pressing problems faced by the people and the quarrel over “what to call God” was something best left to individual worshippers.
Yahya’s statement on the issue came as a reassurance by the state government following Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Haji Aman’s declaration in the State Legislative Assembly last year that the state government has no problem with the Catholic Church in Sabah using the word “Allah” in its Bahasa Malaysia publication of the mission’s monthly newspaper, The Catholic Sabah.
Musa said this was the policy of the state government on the matter and cemented the assurance by the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak on Oct 21 last year that Christians in Sabah and Sarawak can use the word “Allah”.
Najib’s assurance came after the Court of Appeal ruling on October 14 that the word was reserved strictly for Muslims.
Musa’s statement on the issue was made in a written reply to a question posed by Tamparuli assemblyman Datuk Seri Panglima Wilfred Bumburing during the recent State Legislative Assembly sitting.
The opposition lawmaker had asked what the Sabah government’s stand on the use of the word by the Catholic Sabah newspaper after the Court of Appeal banned The Herald, the national Catholic publication, from printing the word “Allah”.
The Sarawak state government’s view of the issue is in tandem with that of Sabah.