Concept of Islamic Leadership in Syed Muhammad Naquib Al-Attas’s Philosophy

Islamic leadership is defined as a divine trust (amanah) from Allah, based on the Tauhidic paradigm of oneness of Allah that is focusing to serve HIM as HIS servant, while at the same time be the servant of Allah, perform the role of Khalefah (vicegerent) of Allah fully adheres to the Sunnah central to Islamic personality, characteristics and aklaq (Islamic moral and ethical) that was exemplified by the prophet (s.a.w), leading followers to the organization goals and to the straight path of the success in the Hereafter. It is based on this adopted definition that the paper tries to look into the notion from perspective of a Malaysian Muslim Philosopher to the core, Syed Muhammad Naquib Al-Attas, who believes in delivering amanah given to him, and at the same time perform the role of vicegerent of Allah. He suggests that lack of good leaders or rise of unqualified and false ones is one of the major problems of Ummah. Content analysis approach is engaged on both primary and secondary data collected. That is to say, it is a qualitative research in nature. The finding shows that the basis of Al-Attas’s concept of leadership is entrenched in Al-Qur’an and the tradition of the prophet in addition to his deep understanding on the Islamic Sciences such as Islamic theology, philosophy, and metaphysis and so on.

Prevalence and Correlates of Comorbid Depression in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes Attending Clinic at Aga Khan University Hospital, Nairobi

Introduction: Type 2 diabetes affects 500,000 people in Kenya and is a single cause of morbidity and mortality. It also co-exists with depression, increasing the disease severity and the likelihood of a lower quality of life. Objectives: The primary aim of this study was to examine the depression prevalence as well as factors associated with depression among patients with Type 2 diabetes attending clinic at Aga Khan University Hospital Nairobi (AKUHN). The study also assessed the differences in depression severity with Type 2 diabetes alone and with Type 2 diabetes and other comorbid conditions. Methodology: An analytic cross-sectional methodology was used. A closed-ended interviewer-administered questionnaire was used to collect data. The prevalence of depression was calculated using frequency distribution. Binary logistic regression was used to assess the association between the variables of interest and comorbid depression and Type 2 diabetes, at the bivariate and multivariate levels. Chi-square was used to assess the difference in depression severity between those with depression as the only comorbidity and those with multiple comorbidities. Results: Prevalence of depression among patients with Type 2 diabetes attending clinic at AKUHN was 21.94%. There was no difference in the severity of depression between Type 2 diabetes patients with depression as the only co-morbidity and those with multiple co-morbidities (χ2=1.29, df=1, p=0.256). The type of hypoglycemic drug used was the only variable that was statistically significantly associated with depression among patients with Type 2 diabetes. Those who used injectable medication had a 2.20 higher odds of being depressed [CI: 1.10 – 4.39, p=0.026], compared to those using oral hypoglycemics. Conclusion: No differences were captured in relation to the severity of depression between patients with depression as the only co-morbidity and those with multiple co-morbidities. Routine screening for and management of depression among patients with Type 2 diabetes should be instituted at AKUHN and across the country, to ensure early detection and intervention.