Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak’s favourite topic of discussion, according to former law minister Zaid Ibrahim, is that of making money and increasing the wealth of Malaysians.
Zaid said the prime minister seldom talks of values, except perhaps Islamic values.
In his latest blog posting, Zaid articulated his views in reaction to the British House Of Commons being told that all British schools must teach “British values” after an official report found substance to allegations that Islamists had penetrated into the schools to promote extremism.
“I wish our prime minister would take some time to talk about Malaysian values - or if we have none, to start formulating them,” he said.
Zaid pointed out that every country needs a common set of values as a guide for its people.
“Values can inspire. They can move people to greater harmony and better community relations.
“In the days of the Rukun Negara, we could say that our Malaysian values were also core universal values.
"This is no longer the case. Now we’re more likely to describe our values and ethos as ‘Islamic’,” he added.
However, Zaid doubted that Islamic values can be the foundation of this nation based on one reason - for any value-system or ethos to be the bedrock of a society or to successfully provide the social glue for a nation, it must be understood and accepted by all ordinary citizens.
“Islamic values, being sourced from a particular religion, will find little acceptance in a multi-religious community.
“We see this in the continuing debate on hudud, and even if there were some ‘Islamic’ values that were similar to ‘national values’, it would be the result of an imposition by the government - not the kind of values freely accepted by the people.
“In any case, Islamic values in Malaysia are at times hard to reconcile with common humanity.
"When you bludgeon dogs, confiscate holy books and conduct regular raids at funerals and weddings, people will wonder if your values are divinely inspired,” he added.
Using God to justify violence?
Zaid also asked if these values are held dear by those who wish only to use God as an excuse to justify their violent ways?
“Certainly, these are not Malaysian values we want to teach our children,” he added.
However, Zaid suspects the prime minister and his deputy Muhyiddin Yassin do not consider these issues important enough to warrant their intervention.
“I do not think that our schools have core national values that teachers must impart to all schoolchildren regardless of religious differences.
“Our teachers probably think that it’s not their duty to impose or create national values.
“Instead, they know that there are lessons on how to be a good Muslim and they probably think that Islamic values are more than adequate as a binding force for the people,” he said.
Perhaps, he said, they think that money and titles are the only things needed to reflect a person’s position in society.
“The rest will take care of itself,” he said.
Zaid said the prime minister seldom talks of values, except perhaps Islamic values.
In his latest blog posting, Zaid articulated his views in reaction to the British House Of Commons being told that all British schools must teach “British values” after an official report found substance to allegations that Islamists had penetrated into the schools to promote extremism.
“I wish our prime minister would take some time to talk about Malaysian values - or if we have none, to start formulating them,” he said.
Zaid pointed out that every country needs a common set of values as a guide for its people.
“Values can inspire. They can move people to greater harmony and better community relations.
“In the days of the Rukun Negara, we could say that our Malaysian values were also core universal values.
"This is no longer the case. Now we’re more likely to describe our values and ethos as ‘Islamic’,” he added.
However, Zaid doubted that Islamic values can be the foundation of this nation based on one reason - for any value-system or ethos to be the bedrock of a society or to successfully provide the social glue for a nation, it must be understood and accepted by all ordinary citizens.
“Islamic values, being sourced from a particular religion, will find little acceptance in a multi-religious community.
“We see this in the continuing debate on hudud, and even if there were some ‘Islamic’ values that were similar to ‘national values’, it would be the result of an imposition by the government - not the kind of values freely accepted by the people.
“In any case, Islamic values in Malaysia are at times hard to reconcile with common humanity.
"When you bludgeon dogs, confiscate holy books and conduct regular raids at funerals and weddings, people will wonder if your values are divinely inspired,” he added.
Using God to justify violence?
Zaid also asked if these values are held dear by those who wish only to use God as an excuse to justify their violent ways?
“Certainly, these are not Malaysian values we want to teach our children,” he added.
However, Zaid suspects the prime minister and his deputy Muhyiddin Yassin do not consider these issues important enough to warrant their intervention.
“I do not think that our schools have core national values that teachers must impart to all schoolchildren regardless of religious differences.
“Our teachers probably think that it’s not their duty to impose or create national values.
“Instead, they know that there are lessons on how to be a good Muslim and they probably think that Islamic values are more than adequate as a binding force for the people,” he said.
Perhaps, he said, they think that money and titles are the only things needed to reflect a person’s position in society.
“The rest will take care of itself,” he said.
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