Today, (9/07/2010) one of the major newspaper's headline i.e. Berita Harian was about the prohibition of a training methodology for self-help and to install back the one inner believe and confident. Little does the author know about the whole program of ESQ but the author does know that it existed. They do have books regarding their training that been sold in major bookstores. However, this was not the first time that ESQ been accused of being un-Islamic and had attention from the religious authority because before this, there are some rumor that some of the ustaz/ulama do not agree with the method used in the training.
But the question is why a training method that had been monitored and advised by a panel of syariah and meet the "syariah compliance" of MS 1900:2005, can be proclaimed "haram" by other the religious authority i.e. the mufti of Wilayah Persekutuan and Majlis Agama Islam Wilayah Persekutuan? On the same paper, the chief of syariah board of ESQ claim that ESQ do not oppose to Islam. For the record, the chief of syariah board of ESQ was the Director General of JAKIM and the members of syariah board are all great scholars of Islam (such as the ex-Mufti of Johor, Dato' Noh Gadut). Some eight muftis were the participants of the program while on 16 June 2010 the National Board of Fatwa declared that ESQ is permitted. Clearly that National Board of Fatwa was attended by ALL muftis in Malaysia and supposedly they did discuss and come to the same outcome. So, why the discrepancy exited between the national board and the state council over the same matter?
This brings us to the same conclusion that is "the fight for authority within the authorities of Islam in Malaysia". Islam in Malaysia is indeed unique with the national authority and the state authority. But in many ways, the state authority may outlaw the national authority by their own fatwa. For example some of the state fatwa had prohibited smoking among muslim but the National Board of Fatwa has yet to issue the fatwa. While Dr Asri cannot give his speeches in Selangor because he has no "license," he is most welcome in many other states. Some of the "can" list in one state is a "cannot" list in others. Even though they claim that the disagreements were just in term of branches of Islam (furu'), the confusion is somewhat annoying and will cause dizzy to one head. It inevitably shown that the authorities of Islam in Malaysia cannot produce a simple understandable reason or result that not only is accepted for themselves, but also for the general people (awam). If you were to issue a fatwa to prohibit something, then why in the meeting of board of NATIONAL fatwa that had been done way before, you do not object the sanction of it in the first place?
The ESQ issue (and other issue that related to Islamic authorities) will be a polemic that shall attract more and more scholars to comment on the matter but at the same time, it also a proof that Malaysia has yet a really solid structure of religious authority of Islam. Yes we may agree to disagree but some issue that had been raised was more serious than we think. If it is associated with faith and believe such as about God, Al-Quran and prophets, than a firm stand from all of the authorities must been delivered. If otherwise, people will confuse, misunderstand and the ummah will be divided. And when that happens, Islam will be weaker and weaker in front of the others.
Please unite, religious authorities, for the ummah!
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