‘No go’ to Pokemon Go, says Rani Kulup

KUALA LUMPUR: The Government should ban the release of Pokemon Go in Malaysia as it would only promote social ills among the youths, says Pertubuhan Martabat Julinan Muhibbah Malaysia (MJMM).

According to the group’s president Abdul Rani Kulup Abdullah, the augmented reality game would also destroy the faith of Muslims, as it could lead to obsession.

“We firmly oppose this game as it is detrimental to children’s development as their minds would be filled with cartoons.

“In the end, everyone would become cartoons in Malaysia,” said Rani Kulup, after lodging a police report against the smartphone app at Dang Wangi police headquarters here, Wednesday.

Amir Amsaa Allapitchay president of Ikatan Rakyat Insan Muslim Malaysia (Irim), who was also present, said Malaysia should emulate countries like Egypt and Saudi Arabia.

Both Egypt and Saudi Arabia have banned the app, deeming the game as “unIslamic” while encouraging gambling and polytheism.

“Allowing the release of Pokemon Go in Malaysia would be truly unacceptable. We would like to suggest the Government to act against this before it destroys the country,” he said.

He said both MJMM and Irim would submit a protest note to the Multimedia and Communications Ministry next week on the matter.

In an amusing twist, a Pokemon made an appearance while Rani Kulup was making the police report.

However, the Pokemon was only available on a hacked version of the game, which is still not available here.

 

Pokemon Go has yet to be launched in Malaysia, after making its presence in the United States, Australia, Germany, Britain and recently Japan, on Android and iOS.

However, several countries like Turkey, Russia and Australia are considering imposing restrictions on the game amid growing concerns over security and safety.

The game uses the smartphone’s camera to create an augmented-reality experience so that a Pokemon would appear to be physically present at a player’s location

Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar had previously said the police would monitor the game to determine if it poses any security threat to the country before making any decision.