The never-ending game of policy process / Siti Omar

Humankind had since times immemorial learned to survive in the best way they know how. Some people are stronger than others. Some are more resourceful. It was historian Ibn Khaldun (1332-1406) who first made the connection of human resourcefulness with his/her strength. In his famous “Muqaddama”, Ibn Khaldun states that the human mind created wealth for the nation. He asserts that diligence and co-operation produced civilization for humankind. The roles of the nation’s leaders were incisive but they became selfish and corrupt which eventually causes the civilization to collapse. Perhaps it was the similar idea of human mind that inspired Arnold Toynbee (1889-1975) theory of challenge and response. The management guru, Peter Drucker (1977) appeared to have “borrowed” this theory when he says that economic and social ills are dysfunctions of society which posed as challenges to entrepreneurs and inventors alike.