The current perception in some circles that the opposition in Malaysia can come together with a common purpose given the election of 'moderates' at the PAS recent general assembly and the admission by its president that PAS needs to reach out to non-Muslims because it cannot rule on its own, is, I believe, wrong.

PAS cannot have its cake and eat it. You cannot have a secular democracy together with a theocratic state where the Sharia is the supreme law of the land.

The reason why there is no real opposition in Malaysia is because there is no common purpose. An opposition which is divided implodes. Malaysians are pragmatic and astute. The founding constitution and the current political thrust of Malaysia is essentially that of a secular democracy. Malaysians are not willing to experiment with a theocratic state, given the disastrous track records such states have all over the world.

Changing our system of government to that of an Islamic theocracy just does not resonate with the average Malaysian. The opposition should be in tune with the average Malaysian and not dance to the tune of a party such as PAS, which is self-serving and hypocritical in many respects.

I say this based on its actions and pronouncements which Malaysians have been privy to over the last six years, before the party was routed in 2004. To give but a few examples:

That women not wearing the tudung and those using lipstick are inviting rape.

The proposal for the imposition of Kharaj tax on non-Muslims in Malaysia.

That non-Muslims cannot be the country's prime minister.

the banning of the 'wayang kulit' because it contains material from the great Hindu epics which were described as 'useless fiction'.

the introducing of stoning to death and amputation as forms of punishment.

the death penalty for Muslims who renounce their faith.

Support for then Taliban regime in Afghanistan. PAS had said that it could not understand what was all the fuss was about when the Buddhist Bamiyan statues where desecrated and bombed, describing them as 'useless bits of stone'.

When thousands perished some years ago during an earthquake in Turkey, PAS' response was that this was Allah's punishment on a Muslim country which was secular.

Supporting the raid by the Jabatan Agama Wilayah Perseketuan (Jawi) on a nightclub in Kuala Lumpur on its belief that Muslims should not enter a premise where alcohol may be served or where people are not 'properly' attired.

Malaysians want an opposition which can bring the Barisan Nasional to book for all the mismanagement, corruption and division which characterises BN governance. To date, there hasn't been an opposition coalition in Malaysia which espouses a common philosophy of equality of the races, freedom of worship in its truest sense, economic fairness and good stewardship of the country's resources.

What will capture the imagination of the whole rakyat is equality, freedom and justice. This is only possible if the democratic process is unashamedly secular. Religion is an emotive and sensitive subject in Malaysia. Once religion enters the political domain, it automatically becomes a source of division in a multi-cultural and multi-religious society such as ours.

Secularism ensures that religion does not enter the political domain to cause division, fear and hatred. It must be stressed that secularism does not curtail or restrict in any way an individual's or community's practice of religion. In fact, the integrity of religion will be safeguarded, because it will not be abused by opportunistic politicians who use religion for political advancement and power-grabbing.

If PAS wants to be part of a viable opposition, then it must categorically renounce its ambition to set up an Islamic state in Malaysia. It must ask for forgiveness from the Malaysian public, Muslim and non-Muslim alike for all the extremist views and wicked comments it has made in the past as outlined above. It must agree to maintain the secular nature of our democracy. It must believe in freedom of worship in all its aspects.

If PAS is not willing to do this, then other opposition parties such as PKR, DAP and PSM would be well-advised to stay clear of PAS. Collaborating with an unrepentant PAS which stubbornly refuses to see the error of its ways will only spell disaster for a viable opposition's effort to effectively counter BN's unhealthy hegemony.