Yoursay: Dr M uses wrong analogy in his defence of Zakir Naik

YOURSAY | 'Jailing Najib will also offend a particular group.'

Yoursay: Dr M on Zakir Naik: We don't just throw problems out

Kangkung: Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, don't talk with a forked tongue. All you need to say is the fugitive from India is important for you to gain Malay votes and that is why you have kept him.

However, without blinking an eye, asylum seeker Arif Komis and his family were deported to Turkey even though they had been granted protection by the United Nations.

Anonymous_bdd97e50: If Mahathir puts our country above all, then Zakir Naik should be thrown out of Malaysia, no matter what the consequences.

Basically, Mahathir is going to displease Malay bigots. Since when was it a problem for Mahathir to step on people's toes?

Anonymous 770241447347646: As far as Zakir Naik is concerned, we know very well Mahathir is fearful of losing Malay support.

He is just a pawn in the political game. But a dangerous pawn who, one day, may move up to be a kingmaker. When he reaches that stage, he will be difficult to control.

Anonymous_cdb4fb5d: In GE14, Zakir Naik was apparently appealing to the Muslims to vote for BN.

After BN lost, this man rushed to Mahathir and kissed his hands and apologised for supporting BN/Najib Razak.

Mahathir practises chronic cronyism. He protects Zakir at the expense of losing non-Malay votes.

Orang Kg 1A: Mahathir is talking nonsense and has lost his sense of responsibility towards our nation and the people.

If we use his analogy, then Najib should not have been charged because he still has people's support.

This old man is saying if someone commands the support of a majority, then action cannot be taken against them for it may cause disharmony and/or harm our stability, and they are free to do anything in this country? This is insane!

Freethinker: Indeed, jailing Najib will also offend a particular group. So, should we just release him and retract the prosecution against him?

It's wrong to harbour a fugitive from another country. It's more wrong trying to justify your actions, Mahathir.

Ace: In your attempts to justify the unjustifiable, you often compare apples with oranges.

We see no resemblance or relationship, however distant, between vernacular schools and that wanted man.

Why are you forcing us to take in a problem that is not ours? If you are so magnanimous, why don't you take in all the Rohingyas from Myanmar? Maybe your popularity will soar among the Umno/PAS supporters.

Being afraid to act based on what is correct, makes you an incorrigible sewer politician, not a statesman.

OceanMaster: Vernacular schools probably saved the country in the last 30 years or so. While the national education system was transformed into a dog's breakfast, the pragmatic Chinese community had a better vision for their children's future.

These schools consistently produce top scholars who went on to become successful academicians, entrepreneurs, bankers, industry leaders in every field, and deliver exceptional economic and social mobility to the country.

I shall not also underestimate the contribution of Tamil schools.

All this happened while the mainstream education system slowly got infiltrated by Islamic fundamentalism and racism abetted by political opportunists.

To take the snake-oil-seller and bigot, Zakir Naik, and compare him against the minority communities who have given everything for this country as citizens, is wrong and is a gross humiliation.

To hear such a comparison from this elderly statesman and prime minister is a sad day. I am stunned beyond belief.

Anonymous_a01a7b4a: Mahathir, revamp the national schools by bringing back English as a medium of teaching and taking religion out of the schools, then most parents - Chinese, Indians, Malays, etc - will start sending their kids there.

I am sending my son to a Chinese school next year even though I am a Malay and none of us in the family knows a word of Chinese. It will be very challenging for my son, but we have no choice.

Honma: It’s a lame excuse for Mahathir to blame vernacular schools for the separation of the people of various races and religions.

If the politicians are serious about unity, then the government should accept the intake of non-Malays into Mara colleges and campuses.

It's the New Economic Policy (NEP) that divides the people, not vernacular schools. Certain quarters and politicians used them as their tools to gain political mileage. In doing so, they create tension and disparities among Malaysians.

Odysseus: Malaysia has sent back many people to various countries like Turkey, China and Thailand. Did we bother to ask if those people had any concern about being deported? No.

We don't care if they will get a fair trial. Neither did we follow up to check if they are still alive.

FerdTan: Mahathir said that they were looking for someplace that Zakir Naik could go to but "no one wants to accept him".

That means no one wants this ‘rubbish’, even the Muslim countries in the Middle East. So Mahathir, you would accept this ‘foreign rubbish’ that no one wants?

"He (Mahathir) also agreed there was a political cost in taking action against Indian-born Zakir." That is the most unstatesmanlike statement a politician can make.

Mahathir, at your age, is it too difficult to forget politics for once, and do the right thing and kick the troublemaker out?

You are putting one foreigner's interest over the country's interest. India is one of the largest buyers of our palm oil. The day will come when it may have repercussions.

Capo: The problem is not Zakir Naik. The bigger problem is the prime minister who decides unilaterally not to throw out the 'problem' that is causing so much unease and disharmony in our multicultural country.

Therefore, the solution is simple. Let's get rid of problem no 1 first. Then we will throw out problem no 2.

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