COMMENT | On the cusp of realising his long-sought goal of being the country's prime minister, Anwar Ibrahim finds his path blocked by the very forces he had forged.

The growing realisation that graduates of tahfiz schools had played a major role in PAS’s unprecedented collection of 49 parliamentary seats - the highest among parties that contested in the 15th general election - must come with ironic undertones to the man who, in his youth, led the Islamic Youth Movement of Malaysia (Abim).

During his tenure as Abim president (1974-82), he built the movement into a significant presence in Malaysian politics and made its name known throughout the Islamic world.

If prominent personages of history have their starts, it is because a national or world crisis favours prominence...