BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN: The public have been urged to pledge their full support towards the establishment of the Islamic or Syariah Penal Code System, advocated by His Majesty the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam, Borneo Bulletin reported.
The call was made by the highest religious authority in the country, the Brunei Islamic Religious Council (MUIB), which advises the monarch on all matters pertaining to the religion. The monarch gave his consent to carry out the Islamic Penal Code in the country during a recent titah delivered in conjunction with His Majesty’s 66th birthday celebrations.
At a press conference yesterday, Minister of Religious Affairs Pg Dato Seri Setia Dr Hj Mohammad bin Pg Hj Abdul Rahman said the Brunei Islamic Religious Council held a meeting last Wednesday. The minister, who is also President of the Brunei Islamic Religious Council, noted that the council felt utmost gratitude for His Majesty, and lauded His Majesty for consenting to implement the Islamic Penal Code in the country.
His Majesty in the titah during the Audience and Investiture Ceremony in conjunction with His Majesty’s 66th Birthday on July 15 said the establishment of the Islamic Penal Code in the country would free the people, especially the king, from having to answer Allah (on why Allah’s Law is not being carried out) in the afterlife. His Majesty said that, after assessing the advice of the Brunei Islamic Religious Council, His Majesty had consented to the establishment of the Islamic Penal Code to be carried out in the country. “… but for that matter, provision for Civil Code will still be used, according to the need,” His Majesty said in the titah.
“The Syariah Penal Code has taken a long time to complete,” the minister explained. “It was completed with the full support of several institutions and related agencies in the country. The code is based on Al-Quran al-Karim and al-Sunnah an-Nabawiyyah, whereby its implementation, by the will of Allah the Almighty, will bring about peace and prosperity, progress and development among societies in the country, good and justice for Muslims and non-Muslims; profit and happiness in this world and in the hereafter; and most importantly, in its implementation we pray for forgiveness from Allah the Almighty.
“For that matter, the council urges the people to pledge their support and loyalty towards the aim of His Majesty in realising the establishment of the Syariah Penal Code in the country,” he added. “Pray for the continued blessing of Allah the Almighty on His Majesty with ‘taufik’ and tidayaf, with protection, health and long life.”