I refer to the Malaysiakini report S'gor I-City wins over Silicon Valley .

The Selangor Pakatan Rakyat government’s effort to exalt the state to be (not only a national but also an international) knowledge-hub deserves applause and congratulations The rather Brobdingnagian project with its holistic approach is but another lofty citizen-benefitting project by the Pakatan government.

Other projects declared and being continuously implemented by the government are being seen as its way of trying to prove the level of seriousness of its new team to improve the well-being of the citizens.

Dr Halimah Ali, the state executive councillor in-charge of the project proudly declared that the project would encompass a comprehensive approach to empower the involvement of all stakeholders in the realm of knowledge.

Selangor is not only to be a place where knowledge-based activities will actively taken place, but also will become the focal reference for knowledge and people of knowledge. No sane human being with a sound mind will oppose such ideals.

However a problem remains. Can such superb ambitions materialise with various red tape still in place and some government departments such as the Selangor Islamic Affairs Department (Jais) going around arbitrarily arresting people as in the case of the former mufti of Perlis, Dr Mohd Asri?

Amongst the essential requirements for any state to attract investors to its soil is the degree to which the rule of law is established. Without proper rule of law, investors would be reluctantl to come for investment. A similar case can be applied to the investment of knowledge.

It is impossible to imagine that any scholar would be willing to come to a state where a ‘tauliah’ from Jais becomes the main prerequisite for one to talk or discuss about Islam. In fact, many will fear the abuse of such a law akin to what was demonstrated Jais with the the pseudo-arrest of the former mufti.

Such perceptions, based strongly on the empirical evidence of the case of the former mufti, will turn Selangor into a horrendous territory as far as Islamic scholars, academics and intellectuals are concerned.

My sincere advice to the Selangor Pakatan government is to attempt to revamp such regulations in order to crystallise its ‘knowledge-hub’ project. The state must put the democratisation of knowledge, including Islamic knowledge, as a priority towards achieving the goals of such a brilliant project.

The state must also prove its adherence to the freedom of ideas and speech in tandem with its proposal for a freedom of information enactment. The ‘La Convivencia’ spirit that was once lived with the glorious epoch of Islamic Andalusia should become Selangor’s major theme for the project.

Without sufficient room for intellectual debate and freedom of expression and knowledge, the aforementioned noble intention will becoming just another wishful dream akin to BN’s lip service projects to win votes from the people.

The first task for the Selangor government then is to liberate the state religious authority from their ‘medieval mentality’. The religious officials must be taken out from the hundred years ago reality they are living with to current modern reality.

The writer is advisor, Durham Malaysian Scholars, Durham, UK.