INDIAN preacher Zakir Naik has overstayed his welcome, what with his questioning of loyalty of Malaysians, particularly Hindus, in this multi-ethnic, multi-religious and multicultural country of ours.

As if emboldened by the support of the state and certain religious groups and three islands in Tasik Kenyir to boot, the man, who is wanted by the Indian government for alleged money-laundering, even had the gall to tell the so-called “old guests” in the Chinese community to go back where they came from, which is most likely Malaysia.

He reportedly expressed this uncalled-for statement in a series of religious events in Kelantan recently.

While the refrain of “go back to where you came from” is nothing new among certain Malaysians, the fact that it was expressed by this new kid on the block, who was granted permanent residency (PR) not too long ago, is indeed outrageous. Mind you, he’s not even a citizen.

Not that it is okay if it’s expressed by locals, because it can give rise to social and political restlessness and even ethnic and religious friction. Besides, it’s downright abominable.

Zakir’s misconduct, to put it lightly, perhaps suggests the wisdom of having applicants of PR to wait for a spell of time so as to enable them to familiarise themselves with local cultures, laws of the land, politics and, last but not least, ethnic and religious sensitivities.

He should have confined his public talks to the various aspects of Islam that would benefit the followers, instead of poking his nose into Malaysian politics and as a result, riled up segments of the population.

A blatant expression such as this could stoke the fire of ethnic hatred and suspicion among Malaysians, especially if encouraged by certain quarters and worse, if not censured by the authorities.

As it is, there’s a fair share of venomous remarks coming from both Zakir’s supporters and detractors in the local social media, which obviously do not foster good ethnic and religious relations in the country.

In other words, his presence does not add value to ethnic and religious harmony in the country. If anything, it could tear the country’s political, social and cultural fibre that has been seriously frayed of late.

It appears, therefore, that the hurried granting of PR by the past Barisan Nasional government to this man is a grievous mistake.

Incidentally, if it’s true that Zakir has the penchant to mock religions other than Islam, then the preacher (and his local supporters) surely is aware that Islam prohibits its followers from insulting other religions, just as Islam does not want adherents of other faiths to ridicule it.

When once asked about Zakir’s continuing presence in Malaysia, Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad said the preacher would stay here for as long as he does not break local laws.

Zakir’s latest spiel on citizens’ loyalty and “go-home” exhortation make the above justification of the authorities untenable. He has squandered the government’s goodwill.

In a month when Malaysians are supposed to gear up to celebrate the 62nd anniversary of Merdeka, and later 56th anniversary of Malaysia’s formation, we don’t need a celebrated outsider to be a killjoy and divisive factor.

Moreover, we have too much on our plate in our endeavour to focus on attaining substantial reform since the last general election. The Indian preacher is indeed not a happy diversion for concerned Malaysians.

With the interests of all Malaysians in mind, our political leadership must have the willpower to show Zakir the door. – August 15, 2019.