In the Islamic Republic of Iran, there are kadhis (religious officials) hanging around the whorehouses ready and willing to solemnise 'temporary marriages' - temporary as in minutes or hours, depending on the prowess of the patrons - all for a fee of course.

We are under no illusion what 'wifely' services those ladies of the house are offering. Those kadhis with their public piety would like us to believe that they are performing a moral service.

Operationally, their flowing robes and exquisite recitations of the holy verses notwithstanding, they are nothing more than pimps. Sadly, those kadhis are not the only ones using Islam for their nefarious needs and in the process prostituting a great faith.

On a grander scale, there is that deluded Caliph wannabe Osama bin Laden. Unable to find better use of the bounty that Allah had bestowed upon him, he is determined to leave a legacy of monumental hatred and destruction, all in the name of Islam.

The world, both Muslim and non-Muslim, is still paying an horrendous price for his mischief.

Between the kadhi and Osama, Muslim leaders are using our great religion for their own selfish purposes.

In Malaysia we have the antics of the leaders of Umno and PAS. The difference between these leaders and the whorehouse kadhis on one extreme and Osama bin Laden on the other is only a matter of degree.

Last year PAS came out with its Islamic State document; now it is Umno's turn with its Islam Hadhari (civilisational Islam). Both documents have little to do with Islam and everything to do with trying to capture the Muslim vote.

The Islamic State document is nothing more than a recitation of the Islamic version of apple pie and motherhood; a nonsensical fluff, masquerading as a major policy statement.

Islam Hadhari

Islam Hadhari is no better, despite the official hullabaloo. Few would disagree with its ten lofty principles. Cynically one could view them as nothing more than a pretentious attempt at besting the ten commandments, minus the brevity, clarity and gravity.

Malay leaders, unable to craft coherent and effective policies for the pressing problems facing their people, resort to meaningless references to the holy book.

When they should have consulted competent economists for solving persistent poverty for example, they cling to the certitude emanating from religious authorities who are otherwise ignorant of worldly realities.

Liberate the people from the trap of poverty, and you lead them along the path of righteousness and away from sin, quite apart from giving them their dignity and self-respect. Kemiskinan mendakati kefukuran (poverty invites impiety) goes an ancient Malay wisdom.

Eradicate poverty and we reduce substantially those who lead impious lives.

When Muslim leaders should be actively combating corruption and money politics, they are busy quoting the Quran and hadith , and trying to display their piety and religious credentials. If only the myriad problems of the nation could be solved thus!

I long for some substantive discussions on how Malaysia could live up to and achieve the aspirations of Islam Hadhari. Considerable controversy erupted recently over a reader's plaintive query on the relationship between Islam Hadhari and money politics.

He obviously hit a raw nerve. Punishing the poor soul for daring to express his honest concerns will not remove the issue. Besides, how does that square with the third principle of the Hadhari - "free and independent people?"

It is obscene to see Umno leaders endlessly quoting the Quran - with its pristine message of universal justice and respect for individual dignity and liberty - while at the same time defending such intrusive and inhumane laws as the Internal Security Act.

That they fail to appreciate the jarring irony of their position is a stunning reflection of their collective moral blindness.

As for money politics, which to the rest of us is corruption pure and simple, I fail to see how that will lead to a "just and trustworthy government," the second principle of Islam Hadhari, or moral integrity, yet another of Hadhari's hallowed principles.

Confusing good with Islamic

Today's Muslims confuse between being 'Islamic' and being good. Do good and you will be following the moral imperatives of the Quran and the teachings of the prophet. Evil deeds, no matter what the presumed justifications, can never be Islamic.

Killing is evil not because the Quran says it is so, rather, killing is inherently evil, that's why the Quran prohibits it. The difference is not at all subtle.

Serve mankind and you serve God, says the Quran. A widely circulated picture during the last election was one showing Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi leading a congregational prayer of senior government officials. The image he and his advisers were attempting to project was that of a pious imam.

Abdullah should instead emulate the legendary second Caliph, Omar. He was best known not for his erudite recitation of the Quran or for leading congregational prayers but for his effective and progressive leadership.

Omar would stroll incognito in the evening bazaar to find out exactly how the citizens were faring instead of relying on the glowing reports from his subordinates. Today's Muslim leaders, out to prove their piety, would rather spend their evenings in mosques.

Imam Abdullah is taking his religious role too seriously. He forgets that he has a nation to lead, and the intractable problems of Malaysia cannot be solved through sermonising and the endless dispensing of homilies. Nor will prayers alone do it.

Reduce poverty, eliminate corruption, and respect the dignity of the citizens - those are meritorious deeds in the holy book of any religion. Prime Minster Abdullah would be better off concentrating on crafting effective policies to address these pressing problems instead of being distracted by the empty rhetoric of Islam Hadhari.

After all, the citizens of Malaysia, both Muslims and non-Muslims, elected him to be their chief executive, not their imam.