COMMENT The case of prominent Utusan Malaysia columnist, Ridhuan Tee Abdullah, who has been accused of plagiarism, should be of public concern for several reasons.

Firstly, within academia, there are few worst sins than plagiarism. The term ‘sin’ may appear to be too strong but Ridhuan who, regularly from his Utusan pulpit, dishes out his pseudo-intellectual views on developments in the country from a supposedly Islamic perspective probably will understand better the use of this term in the context of the wrongdoing he is alleged to have committed. Or then again, perhaps he does not.