PAS urges voters to follow Spain

PAS urges voters to follow Spain

MALAYSIA: The head of Malaysia's fundamentalist Islamic Party (PAS) Tuesday called on voters to follow the lead of the Spanish electorate and topple the government in upcoming polls.

"If Spanish voters can change their government, why can't we? God willing we will form the next government," PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang told cheering supporters, who punched their fists into the air and cried "Allahu Akbar" (God is greatest).

The Spanish people threw out their conservative government because it supported the United States-led war on Iraq and had contributed ground troops to the conflict, Abdul Hadi said while campaigning in the capital Kuala Lumpur ahead of March 21 elections.

Socialists swept to power on Sunday against the pro-U.S. administration in Spain's general elections, which were overshadowed by terrorist train bombings in Madrid that killed at least 200 people.

Abdul Hadi said there were many reasons to topple the governing National Front, which has been in power in Malaysia since 1957, but voters were afraid of change.

Some 10.3 million Malaysians head for the polls on Sunday, with the role of Islam in government a major issue and PAS presenting the biggest challenge to the ruling party. -- AFP