KUALA LUMPUR: A group of prominent Malays seeking a rational dialogue on Islam was finally scheduled to meet  government representatives last night, a month after issuing an open letter and a week after civil society leaders met former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

Officers from the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) were to meet representatives of the 25 prominent retired civil servants (dubbed the G25) who signed the open letter to prepare for an eventual meeting with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, G25 spokesman Datuk Noor Farida Ariffin said.

This development came about after three civil society leaders met privately with Dr Mahathir last week to discuss their concerns about Putrajaya’s inaction in the face of worsening religious and racial rhetoric.

Noor Farida said the meeting last night would be a “preparatory meeting” between the G25 and Najib.

“For your information, the representatives of G25 will meet with PMO representatives, including Jakim’s (Islamic Development Department) director-general, tonight (last night),” she said.

“The aim of this meeting is to organise a meeting agenda between G25 and the PM,” she said in an SMS to The Malaysian Insider.

The Malaysian Insider reported yesterday morning that three civil society groups — Islamic Renaissance Front, Sisters in Islam and Movement for a Just World — had met Dr Mahathir over fraying race relations in the country.

The meeting with Malaysia’s longest-serving prime minister was held last Tuesday after Najib had snubbed the G25’s requests for a meeting with him. — The Malaysian Insider

This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, on January 8, 2015.