PETALING JAYA - The emergence of a new breed of neo-Malays in the country is sending chills down the spine of former law minister Zaid Ibrahim who said although “seriously wealthy”, they shared values closer to that of the Talibans and militants of Islamic State.
In a blog posting today, Zaid described how the group, led by Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and Federal Territories Minister Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor welcomed the New Year at Dataran Merdeka dressed in Islamic gear and prayer recitals while other Malaysians across the nation preferred to dance to music and play fireworks.
“Is this a new brand of Malay power?” Zaid asked of the men dressed in robes, serban and skull caps.
He noted they even saluted with clenched fists, much like the Nazis saluted Hitler and asked why they were even bothering to celebrate a Gregorian New Year that contained no element or historical significance to Islam.
Zaid also warned of things to come if Zahid ever came to power himself. “It shows that when he comes to power, most probably our politics and our new year celebration will drastically change as well. The very idea of it should send a chill through all our spines.”
Offering an explanation as to why they probably wanted to usher in the New Year with prayer, Zaid said, “Enjoying themselves, they thought, would make them unIslamic.”
“They had to be different because that is the new world they want to create. They wanted to send a new message,” he said, adding that as far as this group was concerned, politics came first even if in their hearts they wished they were listening to local artistes perform instead.
He warned foreign powers to take heed of them, saying their values more closely resembled that of Islamic extremists despite their Brioni suits and “serious wealth.”
“If you care enough about freedom and democracy, you must take the time to understand their thinking,” he said to the ambassadors of China, US and Europe who were in Malaysia.
He said the Chinese were gaining a strong foothold in the country by their huge investments here and added a word of caution, saying, “They must therefore be careful that our burgeoning fascist ideas does not destabilise the other communities or the country’s stability.”
“Many of the Neo Malays here are different from those in Indonesia and Iran. They are closer to the Talibans and ISIS in their values and outlook,” he told the Americans and Europeans, advising them to make some effort to understand this new Muslim mindset.
“Countering these dangerous ideas now will be less costly and better for world peace and stability,” Zaid said - FMT
No comments:
Post a Comment