I refer to Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak’s well-meaning advice   to “just ignore extremists”.

With due respect sir, there are many  Malaysians who will sincerely agree with me that that is  not the way to deal with extremists.

Their inflammatory statements and worse still, their dangerously provocative and evil acts, based on racial and religious hatred, must instead be nipped in the bud!

Their seditious statements and incendiary acts, which undermine our fragile national unity , have to be exposed and those  responsible, from any quarter, should be named, shamed, arrested and  prosecuted. They have to be publicly  exposed and harshly dealt with rather than inadvertently encouraged to do their dirty work stealthily, secretly, and without scrutiny from the Rule of Law!

Malaysians should not tolerate extremists and extreme acts of any  kind, in our multiracial, multi-religious and highly complicated and sensitive society.

If we “just ignore extremists”, they can incite hatred and strife through the social media and get away scot free, while most Malaysians who are moderates, will be penalised and suffer  from  racial and religious persecution, from the very small minority of extremist lunatic fringe elements, who will have a field day spewing poison in our society, without any inhibitions.

The security authorities, too, may take the cue and do little to restrain the extremists and  stop the rot of degradation in national unity .

I dare say that some members of the enthusiastic National Unity Consultative Council (NUCC), of which I am chairperson of the Inclusive Development Committee, may feel that their best efforts at helping to build national unity, could be eroded by ignoring extremists.

How can we ignore extremists and their hate mails, when we all know that they go all out to destroy national unity, so that they can as the PM says, “overpower us”! We have to alert our family and friends to keep them on their guard.

But we will naturally and rightly expect the government and the security authorities to be more vigilant and quick to arrest the growing mischief of the evil extremists!  

So Mr Prime Minister, sir, please get tough and don’t be soft on extremists! Please do not introduce any thinking or policies, that may curtail the necessary and justified criticism and condemnation of extremists and extremist acts, that could “incite fear  and hatred”, that would undermine presently relatively peaceful and blessed Malaysia.

RAMON NAVARATNAM is chairperson of the Asli Centre of Public Policy Studies (CPPS).