When PAS president Hadi Awang rose to deliver his Budget 2026 debate speech in Parliament, his words carried the tone of righteous defiance. He declared that Malaysia’s economy is controlled by the IMF and World Bank, and argued that the government should instead rely on “rich Islamic nations” and return to trading with the dinar rather than the US dollar.
It was a rousing message, aimed to strike a chord with those frustrated by Western dominance. But to former Economic Affairs Minister Rafizi Ramli, it was nothing more than sembang kopi — coffee shop talk dressed up as policy.
Rafizi’s response was sharp and unsparing. He dismissed Hadi's demand as something that is only suitable for talk in a coffee shop.
I must say that I have to agree with Rafizi.
Hadi’s call to abandon the US dollar, betrays a fundamental misunderstanding of how the global economy actually works. The idea that Malaysia could just discard the dollar and realign itself overnight with a bloc of Muslim nations may sound noble, but it ignores the complexities of trade, finance, and economic interdependence.
Hadi’s proposal, in other words, is the economic equivalent of saying you can walk away from your employer out of principle, start your own business from scratch, and expect everything to go smoothly — simply because your friends and family support you. The world doesn’t work like that.
The Hard Reality Behind the Dollar
Before any nation can even think of breaking away from a major economic system, three questions must be answered.
First, can we create genuine value on our own? Do we produce goods, technology, or services that the world truly wants and is willing to pay for? Without value creation, no currency can save us.
Second, even if we can create value, do we have access to markets that will buy our goods? The global financial system, dominated by the US dollar, provides that access. To move away from it would mean building an entirely new network of trust, infrastructure, and trade mechanisms — a monumental task that cannot be achieved through speeches alone.
Third, do we have the reserves and resources to sustain ourselves during such a transition? Economic independence requires more than pride; it demands the capacity to withstand shocks, maintain liquidity, and defend one’s currency from speculative attack. Without these safeguards, we would sink long before reaching our destination.
And even if all these challenges were somehow met, one must still reckon with geopolitical reality: existing powers will not simply step aside. If Malaysia were to try building a new currency system or trade bloc, it would face economic resistance, political isolation, and potentially punitive measures from dominant players.
This is why Rafizi found Hadi’s proposal laughable. It’s not because the idea of reforming the global system is inherently bad — but because it was presented with no plan, no mechanism, and no understanding of the immense structural barriers involved.
From Talk to Track Record
Rafizi went further, reminding the public that Hadi had once been in a position to act on these very ideas. When Hadi served as special envoy to the Middle East with ministerial status, he had the mandate to build the economic cooperation among Islamic nations he now so passionately preaches. Yet, there were no significant outcomes, no meaningful partnerships, and no new trade frameworks that came from his tenure.
Likewise, when PAS was part of the Perikatan Nasional (PN) government, they held multiple ministerial portfolios. If they truly believed in moving away from Western control and toward an Islamic economic bloc, why didn’t they act then? Why was the system left unchanged?
These questions expose the hollowness behind Hadi’s rhetoric. It’s one thing to romanticise Islamic unity and rail against Western influence. It’s another to do the hard, technical work of building credible economic alternatives.
As Rafizi pointed out, the kind of talk Hadi is engaging in sounds impressive in a village hall or a coffee shop, but not in the national legislature.
Political Symbolism vs. Economic Reality
Hadi’s supporters might argue that his point was not about immediate implementation but about moral direction — that Malaysia should aspire to a more independent, Islamic-based economic identity. But moral aspiration alone does not feed an economy.
In practice, every country that has tried to reject the global system without first building strong internal capacity has suffered for it. From Iran’s isolation to Venezuela’s collapse, the lesson is clear: economic sovereignty cannot be declared by speech; it must be earned through competitiveness, resilience, and productivity.
Malaysia, for all its ambition, remains deeply integrated into global trade networks. The US dollar is the medium through which our palm oil, electronics, and commodities reach the world. Breaking away from it without a robust alternative would not be an act of independence — it would be an act of self-sabotage.
Empty Talk, Empty Strategy
In the end, Hadi’s statement was not a plan but a posture. It was political theatre designed to resonate emotionally with those who feel alienated by Western power, but devoid of the substance necessary to translate that emotion into policy.
PN MPs might have applauded Hadi’s words in the Dewan Rakyat, smiling at the sound of Islamic unity and defiance. But outside Parliament, many Malaysians smiled wryly for another reason: they recognised the speech for what it was — grandstanding without groundwork.
If all one seeks is to vent frustration, Hadi is the man for the job. But if the goal is to win, succeed, and steer the nation toward prosperity, Malaysia needs leaders who think in terms of systems, not slogans.
Rafizi was right to call it out for what it was — empty talk masquerading as strategy.
Because the world doesn’t reward the loudest voices; it rewards those who can deliver.
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