KUALA LUMPUR, July 1 — Ever since his shock win as Umno Youth chief, Datuk Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki seemingly has made "Islamising” the wing as one of his main focus — by hosting members in religious events, and reportedly mulls emulating PAS’ pledge of allegiance.

However observers of Islamist politics have predicted that his attempts will fall flat with the common Umno members and run out of steam soon, as it runs counter with the party’s historical DNA and nationalist narrative.

"Umno is a party born of nationalist spirit. Umno’s narrative is as a freedom fighter party, and as a Malay movement over Muslimness,” Institute of the Malay World and Civilisation’s Mohd Faizal Musa told Malay Mail.

"It is not like PAS, which inherited the narrative of Hizbul Muslimin,” he said, referring to the defunct 1948 party born of the left-wing Malay Nationalist Party led by Datuk Seri Burhanuddin al-Helmy, who would later became PAS’ first president.

Asyraf has his background in Islamic finance, and had helmed the Putrajaya-linked missionary group Yayasan Dakwah Islamiah Malaysia (Yadim), before he was appointed a senator and a deputy minister in the Prime Minister’s Department in charge of Islamic affairs.

In the polls, he had lost the Pasir Puteh parliamentary seat to PAS cleric Datuk Nik Mohamad Zawawi Salleh.

Last week he won the Umno Youth chief post, defeating former wing vice-chief Khairul Azwan Harun and eight other candidates, widely seen as a victory against factionalism in the party.

He later spelled out his ambition for the wing in his regular column in Malay daily Sinar Harian, listing down five preconditions before it can undertake "islah”, an Arabic term which roughly means rehabilitation or reconciliation.

To change, Asyraf said, Umno Youth must go through caderisation, indoctrination, spiritual reinforcement, culturalisation of knowledge and and establishing its identity.

"Indoctrination is a process so a member is educated to appreciate the value of integrity, trust, and sacrifice without dreaming of reward and material returns,” Asyraf wrote.

"Meanwhile, spiritual reinforcement needs Umno Youth to recognise the true Islam and not just sloganeering,” he added.

Earlier this week, Asyraf was said to have hosted Umno Youth members from the Ampang and Damansara divisions to a casual religious knowledge-sharing circle, usually called "usrah” among Islamist circles.

"‘Usrah’ refers to a small unit that periodically and consistently converge and discuss generally about Islamic knowledge, lead by a ‘naqib’,” explained Shuhaib Ar Rumy Ismail, a fellow with local group Islamic Renaissance Front.

According to Shuhaib, common topics discussed in usrah include Quranic verses, hadith, worship, and faith — inherited from the influential Egyptian Islamist political activists Muslim Brotherhood, as a way by Islamist movements to indoctrinate fresh and current members.

"Besides Islamic issues, usrah is also an effective avenue to tie down the hearts of Islamic movement members, to strengthen their loyalty towards their struggle,” he added, saying that it is a method commonly used in PAS.

"Implementing usrah with Umno may make the party sway to Islamism, make its members more loyal, obedient, zealous, and confident that it is not only a political party, but an Islamic movement fighting for the only true strain of Islam.”

But Faizal is a bit more sceptical over Asyraf’s success.

"I don’t think Asyraf will easily last within the nationalist party’s framework. I mean, it is a bit hard, if he continues a framework that is alien from the current narrative.”

"The concept of an Islamic movement only exists in a party with an Islamic core, like PAS or Parti Amanah Negara,” said the Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia associate professor.

National University of Singapore’s Syed Farid Alatas also concurred, saying most Malaysians will not be impressed with "superficial” display of Muslimness among Umno since they will be hoping for substantive change from the fallen ruling party.

"To decorate party behaviour with Islamic practices, those ways are out. Umno had already been going in that direction for the general election and it proved it didn’t work,” said the associate professor, referring to the use of Islamic rhetoric, racialism, and Muslim sectarianism.

"It may work only to some Umno members who lack the understanding of general situation of the country.

"They wouldn’t understand, that to return to Islamic values means getting more concerned with social justice, developing country, and returning to Islamic ethos for inter-religious & interracial harmony,” he added, comparing to it to the great Islamic empires such as Andalusia, the Ottoman, and Moghul Empires.

But Asyraf denied the gathering was an attempt at illustrating a more Islamic image, but was simply to nurture the culture of knowledge among the wing members — also another of his five preconditions.

He told Malay Mail that members must champion the party’s struggles based on knowledge and prepare themselves to criticise with facts and figures, rather than relying on emotions and sentiments.

"This will require you to nurture the culture of knowledge because it will be the important ingredient on how you are able to shape the young generation, who are going to become the future leaders of the party,” he said.

"The ‘halaqah ilmu’ or study circle, not ‘usrah’, is actually the culture I want to promote in Umno as we don’t want people who are merely criticising for the sake of criticism.

"In order to become an effective opposition you need to prepare the party members and party fighters who are well equipped with information and facts. We cannot just play with sentiments and emotions,” Asyraf added.

He said the reception had been positive. Many from the division level nationwide have similarly requested and organised similar programmes.

"That is why I started in my home to have these programmes. I see a lot of enthusiasm among the members and they want to hold it at the division level.

"It is like having a multiplying effect and it is something very positive,” he said.