At the onset of the 100th day of Najib Abdul Razak's tenure as Malaysia's prime minister, I decided again to rethink the current fate and prospects of Malaysia and the Malays.

I was looking for answers to questions that's been brimming in my head, questions which I believe are looming in the minds of every human, regarding himself, who and for what reason he exists?

I'm baffled when I think about where our identities come from, and how much are we shaped by our culture and environment.

Each party rejoices in that which they possess (Quran, Al-Mu'minoon)

But as a social and political commentator, I sometimes put such questions aside in order that I may think about the more immediate questions. Right now, the question that needs to be posed is about the Malays and Malaysia.

I decided to take a drive and have breakfast at the Heritage coffee shop in the Kuala Lumpur train station. I had invited my son, Muhiyuddin Al-Attas and my secretary Zaharah Omar to join me.

We have been working on this book for more than half a year now. Zaharah who has been my secretary for 28 years is familiar with the ways of my writing, and Muhiyuddin being my apprentice is also learning my art of writing.

I wanted to digest my thoughts before it comes down on paper and one of the best ways I found to do this is to first discuss and throw my ideas around, what is to ensue is the result of such a conversation.

Those who know me know I have Yemeni roots. But my family has assimilated with the locals over the years.

My father always reminded me that love of a nation is part of one's faith. I still take it as a reminder that whichever community one finds oneself in, one must honour it, respect its culture and work together with the people to honour it.

I suppose also that is why right now, coming to 50 years of writing I still identify myself with the struggle to preserve the honourable aspects of Islam and the Malay culture. Today, whoever talks about the fate of the Malay culture and population is branded a racist or a 'Malay Ultra'.

On the other hand the actual racists and the Malay Ultras are not giving the Malay people a good name either. Cries of 'go back to your country if you disagree with our decision' are unbecoming and immoral, and a deliberate provocation. Painting the other races as 'the other' is unjust and nonsensical.

Some other quarters dismiss this idea as being against the principles of Islam, saying that the Prophet Muhammad is against any notion of race. Being a person from the old school of thought and a stubborn and determined man, I refuse to let this struggle go without first thinking about the solution.

But first I must restate that the idea of a race does not run contrary to the dictates of religion. It is only when this idea is used at the peril and the discrimination of others that it becomes invariably wrong.

At the Heritage coffee shop, I thought about KTM, or Keretapi Tanah Melayu, one of the few companies that still uses the word Melayu, aside from Kampung Melayu and Malay College Kuala Kangsar.

The fear of losing identity among the Malays has always been present. After 1969 however the Malays have gradually accepted the idea of a shared land.

On the other hand when one sees Singapore and the marginalisation of the Malays there, one can't help but ask is that the direction that Malaysia is heading towards?

Will our royal institutions be replaced by a republic of Malaysia? I'm not trying to be controversial for its own sake, but the Malays, being naturally timid and shy have always been victims of intolerance and imploding because they were afraid to voice out their minds.

To the British, the Malays were always natural gentlemen. Will the Malays now be marginalised in a land once named Tanah Melayu?

Today also we hear the NEP has failed in its goal to increase the share of equity among the Malays. The Malay leaders have screwed their own people. What a shame.

Today we are void of this cultural capital that once made our civilization viable. Our language is being corrupted and our culture is reduced to farcical entertainment. So what now for the Malays who want to preserve their identity?