The significance of 'The Prominent 25'

Earlier in the week, news broke about a group of 25 top former senior civil servants who had penned and signed a document on the state of Malaysia’s race and religious discourse.

They are calling for better and stronger leadership in the government to counter the extremist Islamic views that are cropping out from amongst current leaders and politicians.

They are strongly against the statement made by minister in the Prime Minister’s office, Datuk Seri Jamil Khir Baharom, regarding the transgender issue in Negeri Sembilan.

And, they are also calling for all moderate Malays and Muslims to speak out against the extreme and intolerant voices who do not speak for the whole Malay Muslim community.

This group of 25 wants to see proper, informed, rational and inclusive discourse happening when it comes to race and religious relations so that the harmony of Malaysian society isn’t destroyed.

They seem to believe that the insecurity of those in power have led to the rise in the voice of these extremists just so that they will have a tighter grasp on power.

What is the significance of these 25 people and what they have expressed? They consist of former ambassadors, judges, military men, director-generals and secretary-generals of ministries.

Some high-flying names include Tan Sri Dr. Ismail Merican, Tan Sri Datuk Abdul Rahim Din, Tan Sri Dr. Aris Othman and Tan Sri Ahmad Kamil Jaafar.

The significance is because they were part of the federal administration and their strong and critical voice right now could be seen as a vote of no confidence.

They want our current leaders to take a stand, put their foot down, and bring a halt to all the ridiculousness that is taking place.

They seem to believe that by the way Malaysia is regressing, it would look like the basis of the formation of the country could be headed for ruins.

Does it mean that the Constitution would no longer be of any significance? Does it mean that the secularity and democracy of our country will soon be replaced by theocracy?

And what does it mean when our leaders continue to spew out rhetorics about moderation and how tolerant Malaysia is to the outside world when it is the exact opposite happening inside?

These 25 are Malay Muslims, and although I would rather believe that their race and religion doesn’t matter because all Malaysians need to come together for this cause, it actually does.

Their expressed words and call to fellow Malay Muslims is because they believe that the majority in this community, whether among those currently in power or not, are not extremists.

And they believe that once united, the majority can easily drown out the irrational and insecure voices who are creating all this havoc and disharmony that is so unwelcome.

But it is important that the majority need to speak up and be heard. They cannot stay silent any longer. This group of 25 have already taken the first step. Now it is the majority’s turn.