Curbing social ills the path to peace and harmony, says Zahid

PUTRAJAYA: Curbing social ills such as drug abuse and bullying is the path towards ensuring peace and harmony in a country, said Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.

The Deputy Prime Minister said no country in the world is free from such social problems but stressed that Malaysia must act and address these issues efficiently.

“In my opinion, what separates a peaceful country from one that is not peaceful, is how it addresses these social issues.

“I believe Malaysia can be on the right path towards resolving social ills if we address the problems in an efficient way,” he said at a town hall session on social ills organised by the National Social Council here.

Dr Ahmad Zahid, who is also Home Minister, said an important step to take is to increase the level of religious education among Malaysian children.

“Only with religious knowledge that is not misused or misinterpreted, and if applied into daily practice, can we curb social ills.

“There is no religion out there that encourages the destruction of humanity.

“As parents, we must instil the values of our respective religions in our children,” he said.

Strengthening family ties and promoting good values within the community are other ways to address social ills, he said.

Dr Ahmad Zahid said the establishment of the Social Economy Research Institute and the upgrading of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia’s Institute of Ethnic Studies would also play a huge role in researching and evaluating the effectiveness of the Government’s policies and programmes.

They will also coordinate the country’s socioeconomic education.

He announced that Communications and Multimedia Minister Datuk Seri Dr Salleh Said Keruak will chair a Cyber Crime Prevention Committee, which will look into the escalation of cyber crimes in the country.