SIBU: Head of State, Tun Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud has called on the people to continue preserving the harmony in the State and Malaysia as a whole. He added that the citizens of Malaysia were lucky to have a constitution which allowed the freedom of religion and to respect other religions in the country.
“One of the uniqueness that we have in the State and Malaysia as a whole, is that all races regardless of religion, have shown their respect towards other religions by which the Muslims respect other religions. This has also made the non-Muslims respect Islam,” said Tun Taib while officiating the 2018 State-level Maal Hijrah celebration at Sibu Islamic Complex Hall here yesterday.
According to him, Malaysia has a unique system which shows Islam’s tradition to respect other religions and also to practise religious freedom. “Islam is the official religion of our country and we preserve it to continue maintaining our good relations between the Muslims and non-Muslims. “In Sarawak, we live in peace and are able to practise tolerance and respect each other.
“Thus, we must not forget to portray a good image to the world as Malaysia is made up of multi-racial society with Islam as the official religion. We have shown tolerance and respect to other religions. Therefore, we must continue to preserve it,” he stressed. He added that the practice of tolerance and respect have enabled the people to live in harmony. “It also enables us to govern the State and Malaysia as a whole,” he said.
Meanwhile, Tun Taib said that the nation has been maintaining good relations with other countries where Islam was not the country’s official religion. He also pointed out that Malaysians must realise the importance of respecting other religions to ensure the continuity of peaceful relations between the Muslims and non-Muslims.
Also present at the celebration were Tun Taib’s wife, Toh Puan Datuk Patinggi Raghad Kurdi Taib, Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi (Dr) Abang Johari Tun Openg and wife, Datin Patinggi Dato Juma’ani Tun Tuanku Bujang, Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan, State Legislative Assembly Speaker Datuk Amar Mohamad Asfia Awang Nassar, Assistant Minister for Education and Technological Research Dr Annuar Rapaee and President of Sarawak Islamic Council (MIS) Datu Misnu Taha.
