Centre for Global Affairs (Icon) president Abdul Razak Baginda said it was important for the government to be aware that Wahhabi activists had taken control of much of Islamic education in the Arab world.
He claimed that Wahhabi beliefs were not compatible with multiculturalism.
“Wahhabism promotes ethnocentrism, which is the dominance of one group, whereas in a multi-racial society, it should be about one for all and all for one,” he told FMT.
Razak’s remarks followed a call by Jasser Auda, chairman of the London-based Maqasid Institute, for a stop to the practice of sending students to learn Islam in the Middle East.
Auda was recently quoted by the Malaysian Insight as saying that the students ended up having their beliefs corrupted by the political culture there.
Razak said the government should ensure that it was always cognisant of what Malaysian students in the Middle East were doing.
“If I go to Cairo to study medicine, what’s stopping me from being radicalised?” he said.
“There are a lot of extremist groups in the Middle East. The government is very concerned in particular about Shi’ism, but what stops someone from going to study in Saudi Arabia and making his way to Iran?
“On paper, I might be studying Islam in Saudi Arabia, but I could end up being recruited in a Shia school in Iran. Who’s monitoring this?”
Razak also said Malaysia was in danger of losing its reputation as a moderate nation.
“We’re becoming very conservative and very extremist,” he said, citing a fatwa against yoga and a denial of the halal certificate to a restaurant that listed “Pretzel Dog” on its menu.
“The fact that we have reached that level of discussion goes to show that we’re moving backwards,” he added.
In 2008, the National Fatwa Council banned yoga on grounds that it was inappropriate for Muslims as it involved chants and “acts of worship of the god of another religion”.
In October last year, Auntie Anne’s Malaysia said it had to change the name of its hot dog dish to “Pretzel Sausage” in order to qualify for the halal certificate issued by the Malaysian Islamic Development Department.
Report: Malaysia’s slide towards conservative Islam and intolerance will continue