Political competition between the Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Rakyat coalitions is predicated on numerous fronts, the more sensitive of which involves that of religious matters. There is certainly a long history which has set a fertile ground for political parties to continually outperform the other in attempting to be more “Islamic” both in theory and practice. This holds true especially for the United Malay National Organisation (UMNO) and Parti SeIslam Malaysia (PAS). This article will not go into the history of political Islam in Malaysia, but instead will explore the policy reform areas that have been taken up by the Pakatan Rakyat state governments in Penang and Selangor with regards to Islamic affairs.

The two and a half years of Pakatan Rakyat governing in these states have been peppered with incidents that reflect the complexities surrounding religion, the players involved, their areas of jurisdiction and the resulting impact on society. For example, in 2008 when the Penang State Government used the Arabic phrase “Amar Ma’aruf Nahi Mungkar” meaning “Enjoin what is good and forbid what is evil” in banners and posters put up across the Penang state, the Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng was accused of being unqualified to state those words as a non-Muslim himself. More recently, his name was alleged to have appeared within the pre-determined khutbah text during Friday prayers in place of the Agong’s name. There was also a doctored photo of Lim slaughtering a cow for Muslim consumption.

In Selangor, a member of parliament from the Democratic Action Party (DAP) Teo Nie Ching was criticised for having delivered a short speech within the premises of a mosque. A letter was later sent by Majlis Agama Islam Selangor (MAIS), or the Selangor Islamic Council, stating that she needed to obtain its permission before visiting any surau or mosque in Selangor.

All of the above incidents although representing the natural religious-political nexus in society have been played up by government-friendly media, leading to the perception – or with the intention that these perceptions are formed – that the Pakatan Rakyat coalition does not adhere to Islamic principles. This is especially so given that attacks take place largely against members of the mainly Chinese-based party, DAP. The understanding seems to be that the DAP does not quite comprehend matters related to Islam, and by virtue of being a member of the political coalition this therefore “disqualifies” the Pakatan from being a government genuinely representing and serving the Muslims of Malaysia. The Malay-Muslim community, being the majority in the country, naturally possesses the greatest political capital, which parties readily recognise.

Improvements to Policy

It is perhaps necessary to outline the various agencies involved when examining the extent to which the state governments have a voice. Every state has a religious council and department respectively and in Selangor they are MAIS and Jabatan Agama Islam Selangor (JAIS) or the Selangor Islamic Department, whilst in Penang they are Majlis Agama Islam Pulau Pinang (MAIPP) and Jabatan Agama Islam Pulau Pinang (JAIPP), or the Penang Islamic Council and Penang Islamic Department. The councils generally formulate policies, which the departments thereafter implement.

State religious councils MAIS and MAIPP are Federal agencies, whilst the state religious departments JAIS and JAIPP are theoretically State agencies. Councils are therefore largely autonomous from the state governments themselves, with the exception of representation on their board. The state executive councillor in charge of Islamic affairs is usually member of the state religious council itself. For example, Hasan Ali sits on the MAIS board as the deputy chairman, whilst Abdul Malik Abul Kassim is on its equivalent in Penang, as a member of MAIPP’s board. Apart from that, Hasan Ali also sits on the Zakat Board (Lembaga Zakat) board of directors.

Because JAIS and JAIPP are state agencies, the state governments make decisions on aspects such as financial contributions and the nature of what such assistance takes. Their funds therefore are channelled from the respective state governments. The difference between the two states lies perhaps in the fact that in Selangor, the religious head (ketua agama) is the Sultan of Selangor, whose edict is required for major decisions such as the selection of the JAIS director’s position, whereas Penang does not have such a personality whose approval is needed for any religious matters. The state exco in charge of Islamic affairs would generally make decisions in conjunction with the religious departments after discussion, although there have been occasions at which they may seem to have conflicted with one state government’s ethos.

Prior to the Pakatan Rakyat taking over the state governments in Penang and Selangor, there has always been the problem of Sekolah Agama Rakyat being neglected without sufficient funding nor infrastructural support. These are schools which operate independently and quite separate from the state religious department-funded Sekolah Rendah Agama, hence the perception that they are counter-cultural, not necessarily promulgating government-centric education policy. These Sekolah Agama Rakyat were borne out of individual Muslim families who wanted to provide an alternative education option for their children, one that is based on Islamic values and principles, holistic in nature.

In Selangor, there are 250 such schools, at both primary and secondary levels. Whilst no funds were given to them by the previous Selangor government, the Pakatan government allocates RM6 million annually to these schools, some of which are boarding schools. Similarly, the Penang state government also provides hardware and basic provisions to the Sekolah Agama Rakyat which were neglected by the previous state government.

The Selangor state government also increased the allowance for guru kafa, or kafa religious teachers to RM1000 for normal teachers (previously RM700). Additionally, a specific education council has been initiated, Majlis Permuafakatan Institusi Pendidikan Islam Selangor (MAPIS, which pools teachers from these Sekolah Agama Rakyat together and provides additional teacher training courses, since many are either diploma or Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) holders with no formal prior teaching training. Books, basic amenities and electrical wiring systems are also provided for under the new support scheme. The focus on education is therefore clear here where the state government encourages more learning programmes within mosques, through tazkirah and knowledge seminars.

Although it seems petty to make superficial comparisons on monetary contributions, it is worth mentioning that the financial contributions to Islamic affairs have actually increased significantly under the Pakatan Rakyat governments, rendering foolish the accusations that Malay or Islamic matters are not given sufficient attention or care. For example, the Penang state government contributed RM20.5 million to Islamic matters in 2009 and RM24.3 million in 2010, more than double what the previous state government allocated, RM12.5 million in 2008. Similarly, the Selangor state government contributed RM136 million in 2009 and RM149 in 2010, compared with RM130 million in 2008, close to a 20 percent increase. (These amounts do not even include what is allocated to the Sekolah Agama Rakyat, which, as mentioned above, is a significant variation under the new state governments).

Other Practices

Quite apart from the policies and programmes directed at Islamic affairs, there have been other more significant policy improvements that are reflective of good governance, transparency and public accountability – the grounding principles of most religions including Islam. The Penang state government has for example made public its practice of open tenders in which 70% of the Penang Development Corporation tenders and 67% of those from Perbadanan Bekalan Air Pulau Pinang (PBAPP) were won by Malay contractors. This again proves that healthy and transparent competition would allow the Bumiputera community to flourish, and in fact would not deprive them of any economic benefits. In Selangor, the Merakyatkan Ekonomi Selangor programme, consisting of seven social welfare based packages, have essentially reached out to all residents within Selangor regardless of race and religion. Malays, naturally making up a majority of the population, would also be immediate beneficiaries of such programmes.

There are many layers to peel open in this very contentious issue of religion in the public space. On the one hand, it is true that the Pakatan Rakyat government has in fact contributed greater financial assistance to mosques and religious schools than the Barisan Nasional state governments in Penang and Selangor. This should therefore dispel the notion that the new governments are unable to cater to the Muslim population’s needs. However, this causes us as Malaysians to be trapped in the same web of petty comparisons, a competition based on one-upmanship.

Recently there has been some public discourse as to whether race or religion ought to be removed from being official markers of political parties’ identities, which is interesting for intellectual debate. However, the reality is that religion especially will always colour politics in Malaysia, officially or not. Given such circumstances, the better path to tread would be one that allows the embracing of more meaningful Islamic principles such as truth, accountability, and good governance instead of debating who should be allowed into mosques. Genuine reform would mean deeper, more conscientious development of policies truly reflective of the religion that shapes much of the Malaysian way of life.

Tricia Yeoh blogs on triciayeoh.com

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