Wan Azizah: A Tragedy of a Woman?

Malaysian Insider today quoted Anwar questioning PAS, “Are you not ready to accept a woman leader?”  Ahah… I just need to say something as soon as I read that, and here it is:

I have no rights to answer on behalf of PAS but I do think this is quite an interesting topic to discuss because I do hear that UMNO too, make a fuss about having a female MB. 

Personally, I don’t see anything wrong with being led by a woman.  I had a female boss before, not very pretty though, but certainly very articulate and smart and she deserved all the respect from me. 

I think some of you might already know that I have been doing a little studying on Islam so I do know that Muhammad’s wife, Siti Khadijah was a great leader.  She was a businesswoman - a very successful and respectable one.  She couldn’t be one, if she was not a great leader.  I also know that the Prophet did seek advices from her, asked for her opinions and discussed matters with her.  He wouldn’t do so if she was not a woman with great leadership skills. 

So I take it that a woman may not lead the prayers in Islam, but she can lead or rule as well as men should she had the right quality. 

Other wives of the Prophet were also politically active. Umm Salamah was instrumental in advising the Prophet during the crisis of Hudaibiyah. Her advice prevented disunity and prevailed over the advice of other men including Omar ibn Al-Khattab.  

And Aisha was a rich source of religious knowledge and the first Muslim woman to lead men into battle in Basra (656).  

If women were not meant to be leaders, why are some of the Prophet’s wives so politically inspiring?

Do you know that one of the earliest Muslim woman actually hold a governmental position was probably Al-Shafa bint Abdullah ibn Abd Shams whom the second Caliph appointed Manager of the market at Madinah. She supervised men and women and had authority over both.

I believe that Islam is not a chauvinistic religion; it never was and never should be.  The Malays in UMNO or PAS who take it otherwise must have read a different Quran. 

However, to compare Selangor and Madinah would be the most ridiculous thing, and to compare Wan Azizah to any of the Prophet’s wife is, of course, unspeakably insulting. 

So, let’s just go straight to the point that the problem with Wan Azizah is not her gender, and I think even Anwar knows that. 

The problem with Wan Azizah is her inability to lead.  She has failed the party, her constitution and herself for she couldn’t even become a stay-at-home grandmother like she said she wanted. 

She is always being led, forced and pressured to do something, anything and everything to keep her husband in power.   She is never a leader, neither a follower.  She is merely a slave to Anwar Ibrahim.

Again, the situation in Selangor is not a gender-related-crisis - or at least, I hope so.  I refuse to believe that Malaysians are that shallow.  I believe that should Wan Azizah proved to be a better leader, then people, even PAS supporters will have problems saying ‘no’ to her as MB regardless of her gender. 

We have seen many capable female leaders – Muslims and non-Muslims.  Some are far more capable than men.  However, one thing many men don’t know is that women usually prefer to lay low and let the men do the show.  Oh yeah, trust me. 

You know why?  Because women don’t have that much ego, thus makes them much wiser.  They don’t need the limelight or the bragging.  All they need is for the things to go their way or the right way. 

For that, these wise women know that they don’t even have to be in front to lead. Instead, they just whisper the directions from the passenger’s seat. 

Too bad that this is not the case for Wan Azizah for she is being pushed to the front seat and expected to drive with grace while her hands and legs all tied up to the back.  She is dragged over to the stage like a ventriloquist’s puppet.  She has no voice of her own and no hands or leg to walk-off. 

I must admit that I feel sorry for her.  I’m surprised that even her daughter puts power first, before her mother.  I mean, we all can see how uncomfortable Wan Azizah is when on stage, in parliament, in front of the lights and cameras and microphones.  She looks tense and confused.  

Therefore, I must say that if there is anyone who does not have any respect towards women, it is Anwar Ibrahim for he does not seem to even respect his own wife.   

My point here is that, women are humans too, just like men.  Some of us are great leaders, some of us even suck at driving.  So, respect women just like how we want them to respect us.  In fact, they deserve more respect from us, as they are, in fact, our mothers. 

Isn’t this what Islam taught you?