I refer to Malaysiakini report Bomb squad uncovers ‘charm’ under Pak Lah desk .

One is not surprised to read that a so-called ‘charm’ was found under the desk of Pak Lah by the police bomb squad. During Umno party’s polls, it is an open secret that well-known bomoh (shaman) are sought after by aspiring party leaders to enhance their chances in winning coveted seats in the party.

The Malays may be Muslims and although Islam forbids its followers t to indulge in activities which can erode their faith ( iman ) to Allah swt, one is surprised that there are still a lot of ignorant ( jahil ) Muslims who still think that they need to depend on supernatural powers to move up the ladder in politic. What they do is shirik and is a great sin under Islamic principles.

While we are living in the 21 st century and people are encouraged to embrace science and technology in order to improve their knowledge and well-being , it seems to an anomaly that the largest party which governs our country still has people who believe in witchcraft and mumbo- jumbo. Voodoo politics at its best.

One can recall an incident a decade ago when a state assembly person from Pahang was butchered by a female bomoh , her husband and a young assistant. The trio were subsequently sent to the gallows for their hideous crime. This gives a picture how bomoh with their black magic have ingrained themselves in Malay society.

Politicians of all shades will used charms to make their bosses higher up to notice them or put fear into their political opponents. Rich politicians have been known to source Buddhist monks from our northern neighbour as they think the monks’ charms work better than the ‘local products’.

Even in Indonesia, the late president Suharto - who ruled for more than three decades - had an army of 200 bomoh to protect him while he was holding office.

But as a Muslim, you must believe that power is given or taken as Allah swt commands and no matter how many bomoh you used to secure your high position, once your time is up, you still have to go under God’s will.

We should be lucky that it was only a ‘charm’ that was found under Pak Lah’s desk and not a bomb. Still, the security breach is a big concern as one wonders how could someone have smuggled in such a thing into the meeting room without being detected.

Coming back to the party’s polls, with Ali Rustam - a favorite to win the deputy president’s post - being barred from standing, the coast is clear for Muhiyididn Yassin to become Najib’s deputy as the other contender, Muhammad Muhammad is a a weak position.

Looks like history is repeating itself. Najib father, the country’s second prime minister Abdul Razak Hussein, had two deputies from Johor serving under him, Ismail Jaafar and Hussein Onn,

God willing Muhiyiddin Yassin from Johor will follow in the footsteps of the two statesmen before him.

While we are supposed to be a developed nation come 2020 , it is sad to think that our leaders who are supposed to lead us to greater heights still believe in witchcraft and black magic to win seats in the party and government.

Where is their faith in Allah swt , one wonders?