Following Indian preacher Zakir Naik’s statement allegedly describing Malaysian Chinese people as “old guests”, adding that they should leave Malaysia first before telling him to leave the country, there has been a huge outcry throughout the country. He reportedly made this statement during an event in Kelantan last week.
Prior to that, he also reportedly made a statement claiming that the local Hindu community was more supportive of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi than Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
Source: Zakir Naik
The statements drew a lot of backlash from ordinary citizens and local politicians like Human Resources Minister M. Kulasegaran, Communication and Multimedia Minister Gobind Singh Deo, as well as Youth and Sports Minister Syed Saddiq Abdul Rahman, who urged the Prime Minister to deport Zakir Naik back to India, where he is currently wanted for money laundering and hate speech.
Now, according to The Star, the preacher has just been banned from entering Sarawak by the state government. Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr James Jemut Masing and state Local Government and Housing Minister Datuk Dr Sim Kui Hian reportedly confirmed this decision with Chinese daily Sin Chew on Thursday (15th August).
The ban was reportedly made on the basis that his statements could endanger the ethnic and religious harmony of Sarawak.
Source: Free Malaysia Today
On top of that, 115 police reports against Zakir Naik were filed across Malaysia, prompting the police to investigate him under Section 504 of the Penal Code for intentional insult with intent to provoke a breach of the peace.
Federal Criminal Investigation Department director Commissioner Datuk Huzir Mohamed was quoted by the Malay Mail as saying,
“Investigation papers were opened following a number of police reports we received. As of today, we received a total of 115 police reports nationwide.
Zakir Naik was previously on the run from Indian authorities in 2015 and fled to Malaysia, where he was granted permanent resident (PR) status that same year.
Stay tuned for more updates on this developing story.
Also read: Syed Saddiq: Attack on Chinese & Indians is An Attack on All M’sians, Zakir Naik Should Be Deported
