To talk or not to talk...

I'm a bit disappointed in the result of the Deputy President race in the PAS Muktamar yesterday. I was hoping that the representative from the "professional" faction of the party or the so-called "Erdogan faction," Husam Musa, to win; instead, the top two leadership positions in the party still remain in the control of the "ulama faction."

But that's not my biggest concern. What I find really problematic is that certain faction within PAS is clamoring for a "talk" with UMNO to hopefully establish a "unity government," presumably led by UMNO and PAS. First off I'm against any efforts by the Opposition to form a "unity government" with the ruling coalition. As much as I prefer political rivals to work together for the common good I believe in this case PAS should not even entertain the idea of collaborating with UMNO; the party is simply too corrupted and impossibly resistant to reforms.

Furthermore, any attempt at a "unity" talk should be initiated by UMNO, not PAS. It is UMNO that is desperately holding on to its last vestiges of power and ever since the March 2008 general election the momentum has decidedly been on the Opposition side. In the context of real politik, there is no pressing need for PAS to make a friendly overture to UMNO.

But then why certain people in PAS are all too willing to cooperate with UMNO? This is a symptom of a larger disease when people suffer from "political identity crisis." Some people in PAS cannot decide if they are Muslim or Malay first. PAS is a Muslim-based party and Islam is the main foundation of its identity, its raison d'etre. One's race shouldn't even matter if one is a member of PAS since Islam by definition and revelation is a universal religion that transcends race and ethnicity.

But in the Malaysian political climate where Islam and Malay identities are taken to be one of the same that's when the confusion kicks in for some of these PAS people. They profess Islam as their main identity but at the same time buy into the "Ketuanan Melayu" cockamamie; thus their willingness to work with UMNO to protect the Malay supremacy over other races in Malaysia. It should then be called the "Malay unity talk" because that's exactly what it is. They get spooked by the rising power of the non-Malays within the Opposition and want to put a lid on it before the "special rights" of the Malays are taken away, or so the argument goes.

These people have to get it in their heads that one cannot be a reformer while still maintaining the same old tired mentality. Reforming the system also means reforming the way we think; otherwise no lasting changes can be made. So make up your damn mind already: are you an egalitarian Muslim or a chauvinistic Malay?

Note: Erdogan refers to the current President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who led his once radical Islamic party, Justice and Development Party (AK Parti), into mainstream Turkish politics and ultimately won the presidency. In addition to vociferous opposition from the nationalist-secularist groups, Erdogan also faces heavy criticism from his own party and other Islamists, accusing him of "diluting" the principles of the party for the sake of attaining and retaining power.