Pas Ulama Council Calls For Timah Liquor Factory To Be Closed

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Following the controversy involving the production of Timah brand liquor, PAS Ulama Council has submitted four proposals to the federal government to address the issue, which includes closing down the manufacturing company to prevent the emergence of more new liquor producers.
Its information chief Mohd Nor Hamzah said since the news broke about the liquor, many netizens had criticised PAS as one of the component parties of the federal government.
It should be noted that the criticisms allegedly linking the liquor to Islam are completely unfounded as whiskey maker Timah, in a statement to address the criticism, said the man on its bottle is Captain Tristram Speedy, an English officer during the British colonisation of Malaya.
"The man on our bottle, Captain Speedy, was one of the men who introduced whiskey culture back then," it said.
Speedy was appointed as an administrator to restore order during the Larut wars, a conflict for control over tin mining areas in Perak from 1861 to 1874.
"Timah is a local word meaning 'tin'. The name 'Timah Whiskey' harks back to the tin mining era during British Malaya.
"Any interpretation of our name unrelated to Malaysian mining is false," added the whiskey firm.
The liquor was officially launched on Oct 7 by Winepak Corp directors Gilbert Yeo and Kenny Yeo, whose company also stressed that its product was intended for non-Muslims of legal age to purchase alcohol.
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The Dewan Ulamak, nonetheless, suggested several measures that need to be made by the federal government to address this issue.
“First, the federal government needs to do a background check and due diligence for this company.
"Secondly, the government must take firm measures by closing down these liquor companies to avoid the precedent that led to the emergence of new liquor companies," said Mohd Nor (above).
He added that the government must also ensure that any advertisement and promotion of liquor by any company must be monitored in accordance with the guidelines prohibiting the promotion of liquor and alcohol as stipulated in Part 3, Content Code on Advertisements, Paragraph 8.5 (Other Specific Advertisements), Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Content Code (Content Code).
"The federal government also needs to streamline monitoring and enforcement by the authorities, such as the Home Ministry and the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry, so that it does not happen again after this," Mohd Nor added. - Mkini

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