He says PAS is out of touch with burden people has to carry.
Mahfuz, who is Pokok Sena MP, cited several reasons why he has chosen to leave a party of which he has been a member for 34 years.
Speaking at a packed press conference today, Mahfuz cited the instance where PAS MPs abstained from voting when the 2018 Budget was passed in the Dewan Rakyat.
The vote abstention, Mahfuz said, showed how out of touch PAS was with the burden the people had to carry, considering the budget had placed further constraints on the people.
“It was a budget that saw subsidies reduced, and the goods and services tax (GST) still in place — basically a budget that took away the income from the people.
“Therefore, it is very unfortunate when a party like PAS cannot feel the heartbeat of the people and identify with the problems they are facing,” he said today when announcing his departure from PAS, effective tonight.
Mahfuz further cited how the private member’s bill by PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang to amend the Syariah Courts (Criminal Jurisdiction) Act to enhance the powers of shariah courts has been used “more as a tool for the party’s political interest, but not to show a high commitment towards Islam itself”.
“In this regard, as a PAS member, I felt as though I had been fooled. I think the other members feel the same way too,” he said.
Another reason, Mahfuz said, was with the fact that PAS was only targeting to win 40 out of 222 parliamentary seats, which showed the Islamist party was not ready to take over the helm of the country.
He stated that even though PAS has said it would contest 130 parliamentary seats, it would be a waste, as they were only targeting to win 40 seats.
“(As a result) the people’s suffering will definitely continue after the general election.
“Based on these reasons, and many others, PAS members must reach something conclusive, to openly and bravely voice their support for Pakatan Harapan in the coming election,” he said.
On whether he was sad to leave PAS, Mahfuz said he was sad with what was going on within the party.
Mahfuz said he had been influenced more by the approach taken by the late Ustaz Fadzil Muhammad Noor, former PAS president and opposition leader.
“His Islamic political way of thinking taught me and influenced me a lot. Many PAS members were very amazed by his way of thinking.
“I am sad with what is happening in PAS because the foundation the late Ustaz Fadzil built, to open a broad political highway in the interest of Islam, has been narrowed. We are back to square one,” he added.
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