KUALA LUMPUR, March 6 ― Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak must explain the steps his government has taken to combat the rise of extremism in Malaysia when the Dewan Rakyat reopens next week, DAP's Lim Kit Siang said today.

The DAP parliamentary leader also urged the Najib administration to set up a “high-powered squad” comprising Malaysia's internet regulator, the police and representatives from Barisan Nasional (BN) and Pakatan Rakyat (PR) “to break the back of the plague of the problem of incessant incitement of racial and religious hatred through lies and falsehoods on the social media”.

“When will the authorities stop the merchants and vendors of hate speech, especially on the social media, from their dastardly deeds of incessant incitement of racial and religious animosities, ill-will and hatred to pit race against race and religion against religion?” the Gelang Patah MP asked, in a statement.

Lim noted that attempt at racial- and religious baiting have risen in recent days, noting that the prime minister's advice to “ignore” the instigators has not stunted their growth.

Last night's attack against his DAP colleague, Teresa Kok, whose hand was smeared with egg by an anonymous man during a ceramah in Penang and an anti-Islam remark circulating on the internet Lim said was falsely attributed to him by an “Umno cybertrooper” proved the spread of extremism in the country.

He was referring to the statement attributed to him: “I personally think that Malaysia will not be able to reach its full potential as a developed country due to the limitations of Islam. Now is the time for us to remove all barriers by changing the current government and the constitution. ‘Ini kalilah!’ (This is it)”.

“This short social media quote, purportedly originating from me, is a downright lie, as I had never made such a statement,” Lim said.

He also noted that a blog is being investigated for spreading false news of Muslim apostasy based on a photograph of an activist and several Muslim women sitting on wooden benches that resemble church pews.

The activist ― Yu Ren Chung from the Women’s Aid Organisation (WAO) ― has said that the picture was taken in 2012 at an event organised by the National Population and Family Development Board (LPPKN) at the International Institute of Islamic Thought and Civilization (Istac), not a church.

“Parliament expects prompt and speedy action by the MCMC (Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission) and the police against the cyberliars who have been allowed for too long to perpertrate their  irresponsible, dangerous and treacherous activities on the social media to incessantly incite racial and religious animosities, ill-will and hatred, posing a grave threat to the peace, harmony and very survival of Malaysia as a multi-racial and multi-religious nation,” said Lim.