KUALA LUMPUR, March 14 — More Malays want a prime minister with “Islamic credentials” over any other quality, according to a recent Merdeka Center survey.
The criterion topped the list for 35.8 per cent of Malay respondents who were asked to name the two main criteria for prospective PMs, surpassing his stance on corruption, management of the economy, and decision making, among others.
“This survey shows that any leader who wants to come in and promote himself as the top person in power needs to show they have Islamic credentials and an awareness of Islamic sensibilities,” Ibrahim Suffian, the director of Merdeka Center, was quoted as saying by news portal The Malaysian Insider.
“They don’t necessarily have to be a religious scholar or an ustaz, but it’s just that Islam is very central to the Malay identity these days,” he was quoted further.
Since the so-called political tsunami of Election 2008, race-based politics has gradually waned but found a new lease on life — or so critics contend — under the guise of religion.
This is facilitated by the ethnoreligious identity of the Malays, the largest electorate group, which is inexorably tied to Islam by dint of the constitutional wording that describes Malays as Muslims.
The use of religion as means to curry favour with the electorate was also palpable in the tussle for “Allah”, the Arabic word for God that Muslims here consider to be exclusive to Islam.
The division was clearly along political lines, with the ruling Umno and the Barisan Nasional it underpins staunchly against non-Muslim use of the word while the federal opposition Pakatan Rakyat adopted the view that there was no issue with Christians calling their God “Allah” in Malay.
In contrast to the Malays, the survey showed the ability to manage the economy was the primary criterion for Chinese respondents (28.5 per cent), while Indians desired a prime minister who treated all races fairly (38.2 per cent).
Adjusted to for all races, however, Malaysians in general agreed with Indians by wanting racial equality as the most desired quality in the prime minister.
The survey was commissioned by The Malaysian Insider, conducted between January 21 and 30, and polled a total of 1,008 respondents.
