ALTHOUGH many Muslims are lukewarm towards Pakatan Harapan’s vision of an inclusive, progressive form of Islam in Malaysia, Amanah is not giving up on the idea, said party president Mohamad Sabu.

Mohamad told The Malaysian Insight that Amanah has faced many obstacles in its attempts to promote its brand of Islam called “Rahmatan lil alamin”, or compassionate Islam.

The administration has hosted scores of talk shows on Muslim television channel Al Hijrah which advocated inclusivity, compassion and rejection of corruption.

But there are still imam preaching hate and suspicion in surau and mosques across the country, said Mohamad.

The government has spent billions rescuing ailing Muslim institutions, such as Tabung Haji and Felda, which were mismanaged by the previous Barisan Nasional administration.

Yet in four by-elections this year, Malays voted for Umno whose officials plundered these organisations, said Mohamad.

“Amanah has a big role to play and we know it is difficult. It is far easier to use race and religious rhetoric to win in politics. You don’t need any education to play the race card,” Mohamad said.

“To promote Rahmatan lil alamin you have to use your intellect, your rationality. Amanah faces a winding path but I am confident that one day we can break through the racism that shackles us,” he said ahead of the party’s congress this weekend.

Amanah members at the congress are expected to discuss the way forward for the government’s brand of Islam.

Amanah may be PH’s smallest and least-known political party but it plays one of the ruling coalition’s biggest roles, said Mohamad.

That is to beat back the rising tide of Malay nationalism and ultra-conservative Islam that have been on the rise since last year’s general election.

Compared to PH’s other parties, DAP, PKR and Bersatu, Amanah is better poised for the job as many of its members are educators, preachers and imam who are a part of the country’s Islamic legal and educational institutions.

Even though it is an Islamic party, a significant portion of its members are non-Muslims who are accorded the same rights as their Muslim counterparts.

But despite the efforts to get Muslims to embrace the concept of inclusivity and peace by its leaders such as de facto Islamic Affairs Minister Mujahid Yusof Rawa, racism and religious intolerance remain deeply seated strong among the community.

In a survey of Muslims by think-tank Ilham Centre earlier this year, a majority of respondents did not feel confident about PH’s brand of Islam.

Mohamad is not surprised by such findings as there are Malay intellectuals who have studied overseas, in a multicultural setting, and returned home with Malay nationalism embedded in their minds.

“When our students go to study Islam in the Middle East, they don’t come back with an Islamic mindset, they come back with an Arabic mindset and this makes them easily influenced by racial sentiments.”

The much-criticised Malay Dignity Congress which was attended by PH leaders is a case in point. Mohamad said he disagreed with all the racist speeches made at the gathering.

“All those who were there were in cahoots with Najib (Razak). They didn’t speak out on the 1Malaysia Development Bhd scandal. If a Malay robs them, it’s okay as long as it’s not a Chinese who robs them.”

Mohamad said he attended the event to accompany Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

“I went to make sure Dr Mahathir did not go alone.”

Mohamad believes that given time, PH would able to free most Malays from the mental shackles of racism.

“We will have to continue (promoting progressive Islam). It will take time but we will be successful one day, even if I don’t live long enough to see it.” – December 6, 2019.