July 29, 2021, 06:19 PM
Malaysians are furious with a motivational speaker, Carl Samsudin, after a video of him publicly degrading an elderly homeless man went viral on social media.
The video was first uploaded on Samsudin's Instagram Stories.
Awak tahu ke kehidupan Pakcik tu sebelum ini?
— Harith Iskander (@HarithIskander) July 28, 2021
Awak di sisinya selama bertahun-tahun yang lepas?
Even so what gives YOU the right to berate another human being
Maybe I am not getting the complete picture.
Please correct me. To "Carl Samsudin" I hope "God" sends you this message pic.twitter.com/GPVODF2rTT
Malaysians felt he was talking down to the homeless man
In the video clip, Samsudin, who is 34 years old, could be heard asking the homeless man if he regretted "not doing anything when he was younger" and "playing around too much in his youth".
When the 64-year-old old man appeared to nod, Samsudin carried on, "He says he regrets it, do you guys want to have that regret when you're old?".
At one point, he asked the crowd, "Have you ever prayed to God, show me the way. What if God sent me to help you guys?"
According to Free Malaysia Today (FMT), there were "about 20 other residents" who were present during the event.
Samsudin was supposedly there to deliver a motivational talk titled "Change Your Life".
Malaysians demand Samsudin to apologise directly to the old man
The video has since drawn ire from Malaysian netizens, who thought he was talking down to an elderly man. Some took issue with him being maskless too.
Taking to Twitter to condemn his actions, they asked Samsudin to apologise to the man for his degrading remarks, even after he offered an apology on social media.
Malaysian celebrity Harith Iskander weighed in too, criticising Samsudin on Twitter and Instagram.
Iskander posted, "Do you know this Pakcik's (uncle) life before this? Have you been by his side in the past? Even so what gives you the right to berate another human being (?) Maybe I am not getting the complete picture. Please correct me. To Carl Samsudin, I hope God sends you this message."
Apologised on social media
Taking to Twitter and Instagram, Samsudin has apologised to Malaysia and his team for letting them down.
In his apology, while he mentioned that he did not intend to humiliate the elderly man, he doubled down on his words, saying that he "did not once say anything humiliating", and that he was just talking in an "enthusiastic tone".
Nonetheless, he said he is sorry for talking to someone much older than him in that manner.
Samsudin also mentioned that he will be meeting the man again soon, and will make amends for his actions.
He further apologised for not wearing a mask during the talk.
He has since been issued a fine by the Malaysian police, as per FMT.
Minister: Don't insult the homeless
Meanwhile, Federal Territories Minister Annuar Musa expressed regret over the incident, and urged parties conducting any programmes with the homeless to be mindful of their conduct, according to FMT.
“I was aggrieved when I saw the way the man was treated. Don’t insult the homeless. Please treat them with respect. Parties who want to help the homeless need to be professional,” he told FMT.
Who is Samsudin?
According to The Sun, Carl Samsudin is an entrepreneur who runs a fashion boutique with his wife, and is also involved in other businesses.
At the time of writing, he has 166,000 followers on Instagram.
He is reportedly part of a non-governmental organisation (NGO), which was facilitating an entrepreneurship programme at the shelter, as per FMT.
Top image via Carl Samsudin/Twitter
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