Earlier this month the nation was horrified over the discovery of a sodomy ring involving 20 charity homes related to a company, Global Ikhwan Services and Businesses Holding (GISB or GISBH).
According to news reports, juvenile males are taught to sodomize other males, and in turn, sodomized by their guardians.
Exposes by online pages such as Scam No One and PUKAS have led to the arrest of more than 100 individuals who are believed to be company members. While the police have yet to conclude their investigations and the perpetrators have not been charged, the cult origins of the company may well explain the terrifying discovery.
So what is GISB? It is a group of companies that operate many businesses, from restaurants to distribution to automotive workshops. GISB has a global footprint in more than a dozen countries, according to its website.
In Malaysia, GISB has established a presence in various states. The most notable could be in Country Homes, Rawang, where a large part of a commercial area hosts many of its outlets.
The man behind it all
Their origin can be found in the 1970s, when a charismatic man who goes by the name Ashaari Mohammad founded a cult group known as Kumpulan Rumah Putih in Datuk Keramat, Kuala Lumpur -with only 12 followers- which evolved into Darul Arqam (Al-Arqam). Al-Arqam was a blend of a religious movement, a business entity, and a doomsday cult centered on Ashari himself.
Ashari or Abuya, as he was fondly called, was a follower of Syeikh Muhammad bin Abdullah Al-Suhaimi, whose deviant teaching of Islam, Aurad Muhammdiah, can be traced to. The teaching, consists of several prayer recitations, and a set of beliefs was banned and declared as sesat (deviant). Among the beliefs it held was that Syeikh Muhammad Abdullah would be reincarnated as Imam Mahdi- a man who is believed to arise at the last hour to rid the world of level and injustice, according to Islamic eschatology.
To say Abuya was influential was an understatement. His messiah-like appeal won him more and more followers. At one point, many of his followers believed that he was to replace Dr Mahathir as prime minister. They believed this was ‘Allah’s timing' (jadual Allah) that he took over Malaysia's leadership from Dr Mahathir.
According to Arqam's former legal advisor, Zabidi Mohamed in his book, Arqam: Tersungkur di Pintu ‘Syurga’, it was not hard to persuade prospective followers to believe in him. His mind is said to be the gate for the Imam Mahdi sect, and that belief in Abuya's mind was systematically indoctrinated for years.
“From my experience, it’s not difficult to indoctrinate members of Al-Arqam, because they are extremely devoted to Ustaz Asaari. For some members of Al-Arqam, it has become a value system that must be adhered to. When they get married, it’s Ustaz Asaari who will bless or determine their match. When they have children, they refer to Ustaz Asaari to get names for them. The children are then raised in Al-Arqam communities, sent to Al-Arqam Kindergarten and Primary/Secondary Schools, and use Al-Arqam soy sauce, Al-Arqam sauces, Al-Arqam noodles, Al-Arqam tofu, bathe with Al-Arqam soap, eat curry with Al-Arqam curry powder, read Al-Arqam newspapers and magazines, and enjoy Al-Arqam nasheeds for entertainment. Everything is bought from Al-Arqam stores, where the sellers are also Al-Arqam members. In fact, some Al-Arqam members even name their children Mohd Al-Arqam.” - from the book Arqam: Tersungkur di Pintu ‘Syurga’, page 11.
One interesting observation made by Abuya as reported in the same book (page 22), was about PAS in Kelantan. Abuya being a former PAS member, said that PAS did not fully understand Islam as a way of life. In PAS' religious sermon, attention was paid only to jurisprudence issues but not matters such as Islamic governance, Islamic economy, Islamic agriculture, and Islamic culture.
Abuya did not hide his intention of taking over the country's leadership, to pave the way for the creation of Daulah Islamiah, or Islamic State. He had a double-decker bus which was known as the ‘moving Parliament’ among his followers. He delivered a sermon talking about his ‘cabinet’ members and that they needed to prepare for the inevitable coming of the Islamic state.
Zabidi had likened Al-Arqam with an unsinkable ship- that was until 12th June 1994, when the government struck back with a Utusan front page headliner- Al Arqam Latih Tentera Badar. According to the report, BAHEIS had accused Arqam of sending its members to Thailand to undergo a military-style training.
The news caught the attention of other countries including Singapore and Thailand- the latter's ambassador to Malaysia, Surapong Poyanand had to issue a statement that the Thai government had no proof of such a group.
Zabidi said that the report was like a torpedo from a submarine that hit the engine room of the Arqam ship, pouring water inside the ship and slowly sinking it.
The war between Al-Arqam and Bahagian Hal Ehwal Islam (BAHEIS) - the predecessor of JAKIM- was just beginning. The war took place in the form of risalah (pamphlets) where both sides published their pamphlets to counter each other.
BAHEIS then fired a second Scud missile- a recording of Abuya's purported dialog with Prophet Muhammad. The recording was aired by Buletin Utama TV3. The Muslim society began to have doubt and their trust in Abuya slowly faded.
Abuya resided in Thailand to avoid being arrested by Malaysian authorities. On 5th August 1994, the National Fatwa Council issued an official ruling banning Al-Arqam and its Aurad Muhammadiah teaching. His capture by PDRM was an operation worthy of its own blockbuster movie. With the help of Thai police, Abuya was finally brought to Malaysia. Along with several senior leaders, Abuya was arrested under the Internal Security Act and was put under house arrest.
Throughout Arqam's rise and fall, Abuya managed to gain the attention of some Southeast Asia's political leaders as well as the mainstream Western media.
How big was Al-Arqam?
Arqam grew from its home base in Kampung Sungai Penchala. The group spread its teaching through education, publication, business, and Islamic entertainment. At its peak, it had 10,000 members and 44 Al-Arqam villages throughout the country.
Al-Arqam business empire was the first of its kind for Malay Muslims in Malaysia. Before the rise of its business wing, no Malays ever ventured into food production at the scale of Al-Arqam. A Chinese paper reported that Al-Arqam's assets were worth RM300 million.
It was said to own the largest fleet of vehicles in South East Asia consisting of cars, vans, lorries, 4WD Pajeros, ambulances, boats, and buses. In fact, Arqamnomics was a term not unheard of among casual economic observers and enthusiasts.
Arqam's dawah effort extended to other countries, including the Philippines, Indonesia, China, Turkey, and Uzbekistan. They were among the pioneers of Islamic missionaries who ventured into the deep jungles of Sabah and Sarawak to counter the Christian missionaries who had established earlier footprints in the two states.
In fact, Abuya had used business as a strategy to spread dawah in Manila. due to high anti-Islam sentiment in the country. He told his followers that if they came as Muslim preachers, they would not be well-received, It's a different story if they put on a corporate mask, stay in expensive hotels, and meet with the business leaders there.
Arqam founded two of the earliest nashid groups in Malaysia, Nada Murni and The Zikr. Though two groups were disbanded after Arqam was banned, the former members founded three most famous nashid groups in Malaysia- Raihan, Rabbani, and Hijjaz- Raihan being the most famous and most successful music band in Malaysia , selling more than 3 million albums worldwide.
The nashid groups were under Odio Visual Arqam (OVA) Productions. When the company operation was no longer viable, the man behind OVA, Haji Ab Wahab Md. Yusof founded Telaga Biru Sdn. Bhd, an Islamic publication company.
They also have Penerbitan Al-Arqam which published children's magazines such as Al-Ain, Anak Soleh, Amal, Al-Munir, and women's magazines such as Al-Mukminah, Al-Muslimah, An-Nasihah, or Al-Qiadah. (They had to change the title of their magazines each time they got banned by the government).
The strongman behind Penerbitan Al-Arqam, Cikgu Hassan Morad then founded Galeri Ilmu, which publishes Asuh and Anis magazines for Muslim children.
Raihan, Rabbani, Hijjaz, Telaga Biru, and Galeri Ilmu are the living legacies of Al-Arqam. They are giants in their industries, and they are now free from Al-Arqam or GISB influence.
Back to GISB
After the banning of Al-Arqam. efforts were made to salvage whatever strength they still possessed, through a company called Rufaqa Corporation. There were still restaurants that hung Abuya's picture. They had a grave ‘simulation’ room that showcased Alam Barzakh (afterlife) experience.
The rebranding exercise was futile as Rufaqa was declared to be deviant by some states such as Perak, Kelantan, and Penang. Abuya passed away in 2010, six years after the formation of Rufaqa.
Rufaqa became GISB- now an entity run by former family friends and followers of Abuya. Its executive chairman, Nasiruddin Ali, was a driver of Abuya.
In an interview with FMT, GISB leader Lokman Hakim Pfordten declared that the company had discarded its image as Arqam's business wing.
“We have nothing to do with what has become history,” he declared.
Though these former Arqam members are supposed to already repented, investigations revealed that Abuya-worshipping did not go away. There are songs praising Abuya in a way that it is prohibited in Islam- an example of such songs can be listened here.
A controversial statement by Nasirudin also resurfaced where he claimed that Abuya did not really die.
GISB is now investigated over several offences including human trafficking. This is because the company would take the children of its members and separate them from their parents, who are working as staff in various subsidiaries of GISB.
The company was also accused of ‘slavery’ - it did not pay its staff proper wages. Instead, meals and accommodation are provided by the company.
Based on the recent investigation and revelation, it is safe to say that GISB had not really abandoned its original teaching which was declared to be deviant. A yet-to-be-verified expose by PUKAS revealed that the cult of Ashari had evolved into a cult of GISB leaders, as followers are asked to seek blessing by drinking water that has been dipped with nails, hair, and beard strands of the company's senior management- including Lokman's.
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