This article first appeared in The Edge Malaysia Weekly on May 20, 2019 - May 26, 2019

GAG orders are never good as they give rise to the perception that there are things to hide. Whatever reasons PAS has for issuing a gag order recently on all members, barring them from discussing party matters openly, it is not doing the party any good.

It is believed the order is a response to serious allegations by prominent central working committee member Zaharuddin Muhammad that some PAS leaders are being funded by Umno.

If this is the reason, then it is a case of too little, too late as talk that PAS is taking money from Umno — an accusation that is not really new — is already widespread among the political fraternity as well as the Malay community.

But more seriously, Zaharuddin’s allegations are threatening to split PAS apart. The Sungai Buloh PAS chief is seen as an important leader because he is the son-in-law of party president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang.

The issue is dedak, a Malay word for animal feed that also refers to bribery.

Last week, Zaharuddin had claimed that five people were part of a “dedak cartel” in PAS. He used acronyms and vague descriptions like Mr NT, Mr KT, Mr KH and Dr Hussam II. However, he was quick to clarify that Datuk Husam Musa, the former PAS leader who is now with Parti Amanah Rakyat, is not among them. The fifth person, according to him, is somebody “everybody knows”.

The allegations are earth-shattering as far as PAS is concerned. But what makes it more stunning is that Zaharuddin claimed that his move to expose them had received the blessings of the party president.

However, not long after that, Hadi denied that he had sanctioned his son-in-law’s move.

A day later, PAS secretary-general Datuk Takiyuddin Hassan announced the gag order, reminding members that “all opinions, suggestions and criticisms about the party should be made internally”.

He warned that anybody violating it would have to face the disciplinary committee.

Zaharuddin reacted swiftly, boldly saying he would not stay silent if the party does not act against the dedak cartel.

Going back in time a little, we know that PAS came under the spotlight when Hadi decided to drop a defamation suit against Sarawak Report editor Clare Rewcastle-Brown. Hadi had wanted to sue her for insinuating that Umno was PAS’ benefactor. She was compensated for legal costs after Hadi dropped the suit and did not pull out any of her reports on the matter.

Then there were news reports of PAS central committee member Nik Abduh Nik Aziz admitting he had lied, with the consent of Hadi, about his involvement in an audio recording in which he said that PAS had received a lot of money from Umno.

Now, it is widely believed that Nik Abduh is accused of being a member of the dedak cartel.

To Mohamad Sayuti Omar, a long-time PAS watcher and author of numerous political books, Zaharuddin “is right and sincere”. But the problem, he says, is that those accused as well as other PAS leaders do not want to accept the exposé and criticism as this involves the question of morality. As we know, PAS has always fashioned itself as a religious party that places much importance on integrity.

As Sayuti sees it, what Zaharuddin did is for the good of the party but he should have brought it up to the central committee or the ulama council.

Nonetheless, he must now be called to give his explanation and show the evidence, he adds.

So, too, must Nik Abduh, particularly as the audio recording has been described as authentic by the party secretary-general.

“PAS must make its stand clear on this issue and Hadi must issue a decree about taking money from Umno,” says Sayuti.

I took up the matter with Azlan Zainal, the CEO of research outfit Ilham Centre. He explained the matter at length, going back to the internal conflict in PAS that resulted in a faction breaking away to form Parti Amanah Negara.

Amanah comprises people from the so-called professional camp in PAS who were ousted in the 2015 party election by the pro-ulama group, which has always wanted cooperation of some sort with Umno.

Forming a pact with Umno and getting money from it has been an ongoing issue in the party.

With the professionals out of PAS, the group responsible for ousting them were soon involved in bickering, which led to the creation of opposing camps.

Zaharuddin and Nik Abduh, the son of the late Datuk Nik Aziz Nik Mat, have been at loggerheads — that is an open secret.

As for the dedak cartel, one bone of contention, which was raised by Zaharuddin, is the source of the Umno money received by PAS. The general belief, according to Azlan, is that it came from 1Malaysia Development Bhd funds. This is still being debated in PAS.

Azlan expects the dedak cartel issue to continue to simmer right until the PAS party elections this year.

Camps are emerging, he says, and the party leadership is under pressure to take action against those involved in getting money from Umno. “But until today, PAS is merely issuing statements asking members not to spread to the media internal matters pertaining to the party.”

To Azlan, the problem is that PAS is too deep into establishing cooperation with Umno, up to the point of getting money and sponsorship. “It used to deny it all but now, everything is out in the open.”

As he sees it, talk of cooperation with Umno being for the good of a united Muslim ummah “is nothing more than a political strategy to gain Malay support to win elections”.

A gag order cannot stop voters from seeing that.

Mohsin Abdullah is contributing editor at The Edge. He has covered politics for over four decades.

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