Unless we are prepared to drown every non-Malay, we can never think of an Islamic administration', these are the words of Malaysia's first prime minister. And they provide a startling reminder to all Malaysians that support or even choose to ignore the factually incorrect statement by Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak.

Malaysia is not an Islamic state and was never intended to be so. Article 3 of the Federal Constitution explicitly states that 'the religion of the Federation is Islam but other religions may be practiced freely.' The basis of this statement was after numerous assurances by the leaders of the Alliance at the time of Independence to the Reid Commission that they had no intention of creating a Muslim theocracy and that 'Malaya' would be a secular state.

There is a plethora of historical evidence which unambiguously states that the forefathers of Malaysia were committed to creating a secular democracy and that Islam was the ceremonial religion.

For Najib to suggest that Malaysia was intended to be anything other than secular he is creating his own revisionist historical account. Suggesting that Umno is guided by Islam is in essence fair enough but to suggest Malaysia, the state, is an Islamic state is completely and utterly wrong. Maybe Najib is unsure of the difference between a 'state' and a political party?

Nevertheless, whilst the debate as to which type of rule - democracy versus theocracy - is better can be bandied around for centuries (according to the analysis of academic Francis Fukuyama, the debate was settled in his book The End of History? which stated that a liberal democracy was the final and best form of governance), the fact remains that at the present time, Malaysia is a secular state.

However, unless Malays and non-Malays aim to curb their repressive government (read: Umno) there remains a distinct possibility Malaysia will indeed become an Islamic state. Enough MPs need only vote for constitutional change to pave the way for the formation of an Islamic state with theological laws. If the deputy leader of the main party is suggesting this is their aim, given that they are 'guided by Islam', the rights of moderate and progressive Muslims as well as non- Muslims will be severely curtailed and Malaysia's economy is bound to suffer.

To all those in favour of such a motion I urge you to examine how well Islamic theocracies fare, the economic and social advances of countries such as Iran and Afghanistan under the Taliban are apt examples.

Finally as a non-Malaysian and a mere postgraduate student of Southeast Asian Studies here in London, I am aware that I am not in a position to state how Malaysians should act or vote on this matter. I can only warn that you get the government you vote for. That is how democracy works, even in an illiberal one like Malaysia.