KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 9 ― The group of 25 former high ranking Malay civil servants should appeal get Datuk Seri Najib Razak to declare that Malaysia is not an Islamic state, Datuk Zaid Ibrahim said today, adding that putting an end to the rising Islamicisation here is crucial to the country's stability.

In his latest blog post, the former Umno minister said should the group, dubbed G25, get to meet with the prime minister, its members must also urge the latter not to centre his administration on politics of religion and race, which he said was preventing the country from progressing.

Malaysia, he pointed out, has been lagging far behind its neighbours like Singapore and Indonesia.

“There is no Islamic state in the world that is prosperous and democratic, or that respects the dignity of individuals. If he wants Malaysia to be peaceful and progressive for many years to come, he must not make religion the central policy of his government.

“He must place his faith in building a country with good leaders committed to governing well, whose central focus is on improving the people’s welfare, not building their spiritual lives. When it comes to finding God’s way, the people must be left to find their own path — this is not the Government’s business,” Zaid wrote.

But the former minister also expressed doubt that much would come of G25's meeting with Najib, and told the group not to be too hopeful.

He said it was unlikely that Najib would heed the group's concerns and agree that the ongoing religious and communal politicking perpetrated by his government must end.

“The Eminent 25’s meeting with the PM will only be successful if he can articulate his position on these issues clearly.

“But I doubt that he will accept any alternative views. He will probably tell the group the same old story: that Islam and the Malays are under attack.

“He will say that only a strong authoritarian rule, underpinned by the lethal mixture of race and religion that UMNO/PAS offers, will help the Malays to be in power. Nothing else matters to him,” wrote Zaid.

The group, now dubbed G25, is scheduled to speak with Najib soon in a meeting where the former is expected to voice its demand for the federal government to review Shariah criminal offences and assert the supremacy of the Federal Constitution over Islamic state laws in the country.

The group had in a recent open letter voiced its dismay over the unresolved disputes on the position and application of Islamic laws in Malaysia, which it said reflects a “serious breakdown” of the division of powers between the federal authority and the states.

G25's letter has since drawn support from moderate Malaysians,with some initiating their own campaign social media campaign dubbed “#Iamthe26”.

But despite gaining much traction on the ground, Zaid said the letter would have likely fell on deaf ears.

“My point is this: the Eminent 25 must not be too hopeful that, at the meeting, the PM will buy into the contents of their open letter.

“They must not hope that he will support democratic government and the protection of civil liberties and rights of minorities,” wrote the former minister.

Zaid also said that the meeting would only be worthwhile if the group can forcefully and categorically convey their position clearly.

He said this was the only way to tell the Najib government that there exist moderate Malays who oppose racial and religious politicking.