KUALA LUMPUR: The post-election fervour continues with another celebrity calling Malaysians to celebrate diversity and work together to lift the country up.
Former actress and TV host Wardina Safiyyah Fadlullah Wilmot posted a lengthy entry on her official Facebook page yesterday, which touched on solidarity and religious tolerance in light of the establishment of the new government after the 14th general election.
The 39-year-old mother-of-three who now resides in Australia with her family, also wrote about her experience living there which was marked by openness and tolerance.
Wardina wrote that the Islamic school in Brisbane that her children go to is headed by a school principal who is a Christian. According to her, there’s no such thing as proselytising in the Islamic school and all religious matters are handled by an imam.
“There’s also tolerance for the various Islamic schools of thought here. I like it like that. No need to argue and fight. Just draining,” she wrote.
Wardina added that all of this didn’t mean that it was a question of being pluralistic or liberalistic.
She also called for the education of the public, for people to trust and respect each other, as well as to open more avenues for meaningful discussions.
“All this rather than hate, anger or just irrational and unfounded fear if there are differences between people. I’m always amazed at those who really love to believe in conspiracy theories that are founded on unfounded presumptions,” she wrote.
The KL-born Spanar Jaya and Cinta 200 Ela actress added that Islam and Muslims shouldn’t be judged by the atrocities done by a few extremists. “These people and their actions do not reflect Islam.”
In the post that received over 5,300 likes and was shared more than 1,900 times, Wardina further wrote: “On another note, I don’t understand why some people are jealous of (education minister) Dr Maszlee or (health minister) Dr Dzul because they are apparently perceived as Islamists. I also don’t understand those who are suspicious of (Segambut MP) Hannah Yeoh just because she is a good Christian.”
“We are all excited by different aspects of this new Malaysian era, since as humans, we are all different anyway.
“As usual, Malaysians like to only look at external appearances. Though I understand that, cleaning things up and fighting corruption like what (finance minister) Guan Eng is doing can also be seen as an Islamic value,” she wrote.
Wardina then invited people to celebrate a new Malaysia filled with diverse characters from the many races that reflect the reality of Malaysian society.
“Respect each other and let us rebuild this nation. All of us Muslims and non-Muslims alike need to work on our explicit and most importantly implicit prejudices.”
Wardina ended the post by saying that what she wrote was just her personal opinion and added: “People can think about it if they want to. It’s alright if you don’t agree with my views.”