Anwar: ‘I will not take any oath over sodomy charge’........

Anwar Ibrahim stands firm on his decision not to take a religious oath on the sodomy allegations against him, reasoning that he has already made a report at the Syariah Court, the highest legal authority in Islam.

"I am a Muslim, and I am bound to the Syariah and Islamic law," he said at his first press conference after being confirmed as candidate in the Permatang Pauh parliamentary by-election, at Yayasan Aman here.

Anwar added that the report he made at the Syariah Court had been largely ignored by the mainstream media. He stressed that the oath-taking made by his former aide and accuser Saiful Bukhari at the Federal Territory mosque in Kuala Lumpur on Friday was "making a mockery of the Quran".

"You kill someone, you rob someone, and then you take an oath; can that settle the matter?" Anwar asked, adding that the Syariah law must be respected at all times.

He said it was an insult to Islam to use a religious act like oath-taking for a political purpose, and that the best way to settle the matter was to face each other in court with evidence.

He noted that Saiful is currently under police custody just as Anwar’s adopted brother Sukma Dermawan Saasmitaatja and former speech writer Dr Munawwar Anees were 10 years ago, when they were reported to have made sodomy allegations against Anwar.

"After they (Sukma and Munawwar) were released from custody, they immediately retracted their statements," he said.

He claimed that this time, his sodomy accuser had sworn on the Quran on purpose in an attempt to deny him victory in the Permatang Pauh parliamentary by-election on Aug 26.

source : the Sun

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Anwar should not swear in order to demonstrate his innocence. If Anwar swears, does that immediately absolve him and suddenly prove that he is innocent? In sodomy I, Anwar swore his innocence but still he was send to Sungai Buloh. PAS spiritual leader Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat said Saiful’s move to swear on the Quran over his sodomy allegation was not in keeping with Islamic teachings.

"In Islam, it is enough to say the three holy words – "wallahi, wabillahi, watallahi". There is no need to hold the Quran," he said. "If he is sincere, he will be the one who knows best. If not, he will be sinful,” he said, adding that Mohd Saiful’s declaration was a personal one between him and God. PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang, has regarded Saiful’s act of swearing on the Quran as an act of stupidity which went against the teachings of Islam.

Saiful knew that just by making a police report alone wasnt sufficient enough to convince the people that he had been sodomized, as a recent survey shows that 66% of those surveyed do not believed in the report . His attempt to convince the people thru the media,blog and Frendster, a social networking site failed miserably. So by swearing on the Koran in a mosque in front of its official at least Saiful knows that his message will be taken seriously,especially among the Malays.Read here.

But his only blunder was that the "sumpah laknat" was done a day prior to the Permatang Pauh nomination day, that provides a different perception towards the issue at stake. Majority of the rakyat perceived this is as an act, probably forced too by individuals and parties that were determined to destroy Anwar’s political future.

However,the presence of thousands of Anwar supporters on nomination day was an indicator that Saiful's "sumpah laknat" might has failed and backfired.

Anwar will win big and prove that even by Saiful's swearing in the mosque; the people will still vote for him...............



cheers.