BY: KEN WATANABE

While Hindu fanatics and Islamic extremists express their respective religious bigotry over the demolition of a temple by DBKL to, ironically, make way for a ‘Madani mosque’ race and religion comes under scrutiny in Malaysia.

There have been heated exchanges and arguments by both sides of the Hindu-Moslem divide and now there is sizzling and raging acrimony with Malaysian prime minister Anwar Ibrahim caught in the middle of the political bickering.

It has become a political bickering as politicians try to gain mileage for self-seeking and self-serving purposes and now Anwar’s obvious Islamisation exercise for Malaysians is no longer covert but out in the open.

However, independent and highly qualified and learned individuals have expressed their view that the Hindu temple to be demolished is not illegal and this has caused Anwar to lose face and caused Islamists to up the ante.

It is conceded by Malaysians in general that if Muslims want to have an Islamisation exercise and conduct proselytizing among non-Muslims they should go ahead but not by the use of cunning and deceit and in a covert way.

This timebomb needs to be defused and the Anwar administration needs to come clean on their Islamisation exercises by being sincere, open and honest that Islam might become the preferred choice of non-Muslims.

-THE MALAYSIA VOICE

** The views expressed on this opinion is of the writer and not the publisher