At a time when our country is doing well, the government still should not lost sight of a more fundamental goal, that is, to develop Malaysians into a civil society. The enhancement of human dignity, the establishment of liberty, the eradication of society’s ills, the revitalisation of our heritage and cultural empowerment which reflects intellectual and artistic achievements are some of the goals to be achieved by our government. This is very much in line with a kind of society as envisaged in the Quran, “… a land fair and happy, and a Lord Oft-Forgiving,” a prosperous and blessed nation, just and caring, and living by humanitarian ideals.
In all our efforts to develop our society, our path to economic prosperity should always be in line with the holistic and multidimensional approach to development. We should be committed that the strength of our society lies in its ability to safeguard human dignity and nobility. No society in the past and the present can continuously be economically prosperous if there is a decline in human nobility. Humanitarian ideals should be the guiding principles in developing our society in all spheres of our endeavours, including economic activities. In fact, for a nation to sustain its economic performance, social strength plays a very determinant part.
Ibn al-Qayyim, a great Muslim scholar, rightly commented that the basis of the shariah is the wisdom and welfare of the people in this world as well as the hereafter. This welfare lies in complete justice, mercy, well-being and wisdom. Anything that departs from justice to oppression, from mercy to harshness, from welfare to misery and from wisdom to folly, has nothing to do with the shariah.
This view is shared by al-Ghazali who thought that the very objective of the shariah is to promote the welfare of the people which lies in safeguarding their faith, their life, their intellect, their posterity and their property. Whatever ensures the safeguard of these five serves public interest and is desirable.
In our move towards a civil society, we must be committed that our society’s competitiveness and development capability can be realised in a more convincing manner through this holistic achievement. Our ability to develop a civil society can be an effective prerequisite for us to be a successful nation in this century.
In line with the views of al-Ghazali as quoted earlier, a number of priorities should be given great attention in our policy formulations, be they education, economic, culture and others. These priorities are as follows:
Firstly, our education system should be able to develop Malaysians who have great attachment to moral requirements. In Islam, the purpose of education is to create a good individual-an individual who possesses a holistic world view based on divine guidance, good and productive character, very participative in social development and, above all, the willingness to uphold the truth, justice and very co-operative with others. This requires our curricula at all levels of education to be conducted along the integrated approach for all subjects. From the Islamic point of view, all subjects have to relate to the noble values of truth, justice and benevolent.
The present state of education is not on the right footing. There is a lack of vision to translate the noble values and world view in organising the present reality.
Secondly, Malaysian society should be a thinking society. In the present modern society, the concern of many education programmes are more on the ability to acquire the skills which can enable an individual to command more commercial rewards. The acquisition of professional qualifications and skills should be promoted. These professionals should be individuals who can also appreciate and understand the social development and cultural practices of the society. The inability to follow the social development can make them less effective in their contributions towards social progress. In a developing society like ours, we must be able to mobilise every individual to be participative and contributive at his optimum level to the social welfare of the entire society.
In the present materialistic society, the move towards a mechanistic society is becoming very apparent. The school and university curricula are giving great emphasis on the technical aspect of knowledge. In the economic discipline for example, we are producing technical economists who are very concerned only with the technical tools in analysing economic phenomena. Most of the curricula do not give enough consideration to subjects which develop critical thinking among graduates on social requirements.
Thirdly, continuous effort must always be focused to ensure that there is social harmony in our multiracial society. The strategy for our social development should be along the spirit of mutual co-operation. We take pride in being able to practise tolerance and have mutual respect for one another. Indeed, it is the heterogenous nature of our society that gives strength to our nation. Every positive element in the culture of every race should be adopted in our national policies as it can foster better relationship. In order for us to move forward towards further advancement, social stability is very fundamental. Co-operation based on the spirit of justice should be the rule of the game. Through social harmony, we can ensure that there is a guarantee for every individual right and security in our society. This ability to achieve unity among Malaysians can definitely safeguard our lives and ensure a brighter prospect for our future generations.
Fourthly, we must ensure that the economic prosperity should benefit our present generations. In this regard, the authorities should work seriously and effectively to achieve a low costs of living economy. The housing and transportation expenses must be drastically reviewed for lower pricing. These two items take most of the people expenses. Continued efforts in reforming, deregulating and liberalising the economy by the authorities are indeed a welcome. The sincerity and willingness by the authorities to improve these sectors is the starting point for our economic stability and advancement. With this commitment, improving our social conditions can be intensified.
The fifth priority lies in safeguarding our posterity. If we are sincere and serious about the welfare of our present generation, we must be more serious about the future generation. Almost everyone wants to see their children better off than themselves. This requires giving urgent and special attention to strengthening the family institution. Quality family institution is the beginning of a civil society.
The above considerations should be given priority in developing our society into a civil society. This goal can succeed if every dimension of the individual’s development is looked at in a holistic manner.
The commitment by the authorities to develop Malaysians into a civil society reflects a serious and noble intention. The road to this success is certainly wrought with challenges but alternatives are not available to achieve that success in life-creating a noble civilisation.