Press Release

Two Calamities Afflicting the Islamic Ummah: Corrupt Rulers and a Corrupt System, Both of Which Must Be Changed Simultaneously

(Translated)

On July 26, 2025, the city of Kuala Lumpur witnessed an unprecedented popular protest, demanding the resignation of the Malaysian Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim. This protest reflected the people's anger and growing frustration towards a leadership that has not only failed to fulfill its promises of reform but has also exacerbated the people's suffering by raising taxes, increasing electricity tariffs, and raising the prices of basic commodities.

The people's anger is further fueled by what is widely seen as Anwar's hypocrisy. His pledge to eliminate corruption stands in stark contrast to his continued protection and promotion of corrupt individuals. Furthermore, his frequent and costly foreign visits - often justified by promises of billions of dollars in foreign investment - have been nothing more than empty slogans with no real results.

Although the opposition has succeeded in exploiting this popular anger by organizing the protest, it has failed to offer a real alternative to the ruler. It has not been clearly stated who will succeed Anwar if he actually resigns. The focus remains narrow, focusing only on removing the Prime Minister, without providing a credible path forward, and unfortunately, the people are still being mobilized based on emotions instead of sound political thinking and viable solutions. This superficial narrative - that the problem lies with Anwar Ibrahim - is what misleads the people. They have failed to realize that the real problem lies not only with the ruler but with the entire system that has been implemented in the country since then.

Since its independence in 1957, Malaysia has been ruled by ten prime ministers and various political parties; the National Front, the Alliance of Hope, the National Alliance, and now a civilian government. Although a small percentage of the population lives a comfortable life, the majority continues to suffer from increasing economic challenges. Social issues are becoming increasingly worrying. Similarly, the education sector continues to suffer from persistent problems. Crime rates show no signs of decreasing, and have become very alarming, including what happens within the police force itself. The political scene remains constantly tainted by scandals, corruption, dishonesty, power struggles, and various types of misconduct, of which the people are always the victims.

In short, despite the change of rulers over the years, the people have not tasted true comfort or prosperity. In every era of rule, the people have constantly revolted against the government's injustice and demanded their rights. Since the era of Dr. Mahathir Mohamad (the first), prime ministers have been under pressure to resign, from within their parties and from external forces. However, every time a new prime minister is appointed, the changes that the people hope for do not materialize. What remains constant without change is the democratic system itself, which was imposed by the colonial powers as a condition for the country's independence.

How can a system crafted by disbelievers, in stark contradiction to the provisions of Islam, provide real solutions for the Islamic Ummah?! It is essential for Muslims to realize this fundamental truth; that replacing a prime minister without replacing the system will never solve the root problems that this Ummah suffers from.

This reality is not limited to Malaysia alone. Throughout the Islamic world, we see the same pattern: Tunisia, Egypt, Yemen, and Libya all witnessed uprisings during the Arab Spring that led to the overthrow of rulers, but the ruling systems remained the same, and the suffering of the peoples continued. Likewise, in Sudan, Turkey, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Indonesia, and many other Islamic countries, rulers have changed repeatedly, but the secular systems inherited from colonialism have remained untouched. As a result, the state of the Ummah has not fundamentally changed.

The Ummah must wake up to the fact that it is not permissible for it to be stung from the same hole twice. But in Malaysia, unfortunately, it has been stung not once or twice, but many times. It has been proven repeatedly that those who come to power under the democratic system not only fail to implement Islam - the real solution to our crises - but are fundamentally unwilling to do so. It has also been proven that democracy, as a colonial legacy, not only contradicts Islam, but was deliberately designed to separate it from life. In other words, it was specifically put in place to prevent the implementation of Islam itself.

This is the double disaster that is plaguing the Islamic Ummah today: corrupt rulers and a corrupt system, both of which have been proven corrupt beyond any doubt.

Corrupt systems only produce corrupt rulers, and these rulers in turn maintain the continuity of those corrupt systems. Just as communism produces communist rulers who maintain communism, and capitalism produces capitalist rulers who maintain the capitalist system, so does democracy; it perpetuates itself by producing rulers who serve and protect it. The ruler and the system are two sides of the same coin that cannot be separated, and each reinforces the other.

Therefore, the Ummah's only way out of these calamities is to change the rulers and the system simultaneously. In Islam, the legitimate ruler is the Caliph, and the legitimate system and state are the Khilafah (Caliphate). This is what Hizb ut-Tahrir is striving to achieve throughout the world, and this is our call to the entire Ummah; to work with us hand in hand to establish the righteous Khilafah (Caliphate) according to the method of the Prophethood.

Abdul Hakim Othman

Official Spokesman of Hizb ut-Tahrir

in Malaysia