The reality of the global power structure at this point dictates that we should regard ourselves as being permanently in a state of resistance and opposition, and we should not, as Islamic parties, seek to ascend to the government.
Taking traditional political office is a losing proposition today. Even if an Islamist party comes to office, this will not mean that they come to power. They will be constrained by the realities of the global corporate state system, and will be unable to implement any program that differs in any meaningful way from the agendas of multinational corporate power. This inability, while not unique to them, will inevitably cause the Islamic parties to be discredited as ineffective or even hypocritical.
The main point is, they will not be able to achieve their goals by entering the government. They will not, nor will anyone else, unless of course they campaign on a platform of neoliberal reforms and surrender of national sovereignty.
We need to address ourselves directly to the actual power system, bypass the intermediary structures of the state, and instead organize to influence the forces which control the state.
Corporate power is not going anywhere.
It is unelected, and cannot be voted out.
It is everywhere, in every area of our lives, and cannot be toppled.
The 150 or so largest corporations in the world, including banks and investment firms, represent a new global hegemon, exercising a degree of control that no imperial system has ever had before. This is the reality, and it is not going to change.
Islamist parties, indeed, any political activists today, need to shift their focus away from their national governments, recognize the prevailing reality, and adapt organizing strategies accordingly. Essentially this means acknowledging that we are not going to attain power, we are not going to achieve our goals by means of reaching political office and so forth, nor by forming governments, but that we can exert influence over the power system through a variety of means, and thereby achieve our goals for society. We are permanently a constituency of corporate power, but that does not make us powerless. It simply means that we have to revise our methods.