Leong said the silence from Pakatan was deafening, following Dr Zakir's inflammatory remarks against Malaysian Chinese and Indians. — Picture via Facebook

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 14 — Comedian Dr Jason Leong has urged government leaders to take a stand against ethno-religious rhetoric today, in light of reported inflammatory remarks against Malaysian minorities by fugitive televangelist Dr Zakir Naik.

In a three-minute video posted on his social media accounts, Dr Leong said although he is accustomed to such uncomfortable rhetoric as it flares up every few years, he is upset about the lack of leadership from Pakatan Harapan.

“Where is your moral standing, PH? I remember when all the leaders who are now in government, back then they were Opposition leaders before May 9, they were all shouting slogans,” he said, referring to the historic 14th general election.

The video published this evening has now been watched over 20,000 times, and received more than 1,300 reactions on Facebook at the time of writing.

“Where are they now, why is your silence so deafening? Unfortunately your silence is deafening but is not as loud as the racial and religious rhetoric that is coming from people like Dr Zakir Naik.

“Is this the hill you want to die on? Is this what you want on your report card? Please do the right thing,” he said in the video titled “A Message from a Concerned Malaysian”.

Dr Leong pointed out that should the pact not do the right thing out of fear of losing votes, they could instead end up losing Malaysia itself.

“If we lose Malaysia, then I have to move to Perth,” he said jokingly, while making a remark about the bad food in the Australian city.

Dr Leong ended his video with a message to Dr Zakir, taking him to task for his recent remark calling the Chinese community as mere “guests” in the country.

“Let me say in no uncertain terms, my grandparents are Malaysians, my parents are Malaysians, I am a Malaysian. This is my country, this is my home.

“I am Malaysian, we are Malaysian. This is our country, this is our home. You don’t get to tell us to balik Cina but you should balik India,” he said, using the Malay phrase for “returning home”.

The controversial preacher has also been reported questioning the loyalty of Hindus in Malaysia during a recent lecture in Kota Baru.