THE Malay-dominated Perikatan Nasional government must walk the talk about protecting the welfare of  Malays and Muslims instead of making empty promises to win votes, said Amanah deputy president Salahuddin Ayub.

He said the coalition’s Malay components of Bersatu, Umno and PAS must show they were sincere about safeguarding Muslim interests. 

As such, he said, the government must explain why a company involved in a meat cartel scandal was allowed to misuse halal certificates issued by the Islamic Development Department (Jakim).

Salahuddin urged the minister in charge of religious affairs to explain the matter.

“This clearly indicates issues of integrity in the department as far as the halal industry is concerned.

 “I want the authorities get to the bottom of this scandal and punish the offenders,” said the former agriculture minister today in a statement.

Salahuddin said the Agriculture and Food Industries Ministry must also explain why its agency MAQiS had failed to flag the cartel.

On December 1, authorities acting on information from MAQiS raided a frozen meat warehouse in Senai Industrial Park, Johor Baru on suspicions of smuggling.

A cartel is believed to have smuggled frozen meat from China, Ukraine, Brazil and Argentina into Malaysia where the meat is repacked in packaging bearing the halal logo.

It was reported that senior officers from four government agencies were bribed to to pass off the non-halal meat as halal-certified.

New Straits Times, which broke the story, said the cartel had been in operation for more than 40 years.

The case is being investigated for trade description offences by the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry. – December 24, 2020.