A LIFE-LONG PAS member and head of libertarian think-tank IDEAS, Wan Saiful Wan Jan, said it would only a matter of time before he is sacked by the Islamist party for his progressive views. 

The chief executive of Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs said he has been a PAS member since 1997 despite disagreeing with the party’s conservative ideology.

“I started to get involved with PAS in 1992 and joined the party as life-long member in 1997. 

“Sooner or later, they will sack me,” he said at a conference on democratic transition in the Islamic world in Kuala Lumpur today.

Wan Saiful had been asked by a conference participant about his criticism of PAS despite his membership in the opposition party.

“Between 1998 and 2010, some said PAS changed to become more progressive.

“Then in 2015, the progressives were kicked out of their positions after they were seen as being too influential in the party,” he said in his presentation on the evolution of Islamism in Malaysian politics.

He added that opposition party Amanah, a splinter of PAS, did not champion true progressive principles, and should be better described as “neo-conservatives” for championing old ideologies rather than new frameworks. 

“For me, progressive ideas are about the individual’s responsibility. In Malaysia, political parties are still talking about the country’s responsibility to the people,” he said. – November 28, 2017.