A formidable, but doable, challenge

THERE was the Islam of PAS that wanted to create an Islamic state with the Quran and the Hadith as the Constitution of the country. There was the Islamisation of Dr Mahathir Mohamed to introduce universal Islamic values of honesty and hard work as the basis of governance. Only for the policy to be hijacked by conservative ideologues into a massive expansion of the Islamic bureaucracy and Syariah jurisdiction.

Then there was the Islam Hadhari of Datuk Seri Abdullah Badawi, a civilisational approach to Islam to promote good governance, democratic practices, and equitable sharing of wealth.