The defining issue of 2004 polls is not Barisan Nasional versus a strong opposition to keep the former under check in protection of the democratic rights and aspirations of the rakyat .

Unfortunately, this issue will be subordinated to the larger looming issue of whether the majority of Malay votes will shift even more to PAS or return to Umno's fold.

The defining issue becomes then whether the existing way of life as Malaysians know it will be allowed to remain. Will Islam remain as official religion under a secular constitution? Or will it will give way to that of an Islamic state based on hudud/qisas laws advocated by the leading opposition party PAS.

Therefore voters who oppose PAS' theocracy but who normally would have voted for a stronger opposition will now feel compelled, in the interest of democracy, to throw their weight behind BN so as to apply the brakes on PAS' ascendancy to theocracy.

This is made easier not just by the calming effect of Pak Lah's clarion call for renewal and reinvention of the ruling coalition along lines of greater accountability, better governance and more strident fight against the cancer of corruption. It is also made easier by the difficulty of casting a vote for the opposition that is represented by PAS or its allies Keadilan/PRM.

Indeed the other question that necessarily arises is whether we want an opposition that brings up national issues or one that emphasises on religious ones only.

PRM merged with and is now subsumed under Keadilan. Keadilan itself has not arisen to present itself as a viable alternative by hiding behind the patronage of PAS.

DAP has dissociated itself from the Barisan Alternatif. In its traditional supporters' view, it is however tainted by past association. If it were to now come out in cooperation with a PAS-led BA to fight the common foe, BN, it will unmake whatever goodwill it has garnered in leaving the BA in the first instance.

If the DAP believes that it is a legitimate flag bearer of the mantle of national opposition, it should therefore field its candidate in contest against that of PAS and its allies. This would of course split the votes amongst opposition in favour of the ruling coalition.

This cannot be helped because the opposition represented by BA has not yet come of age. It is bent on taking the nation backward than forward.

Thus, the more immediate question is who (DAP or PAS) should lead the opposition in Parliament.

The question of whether the opposition should coalesce to deny BN two-thirds majority or even replace it as government does not even arise before the preceding issue is resolved.