The government has no plans at the moment to set up an inter-faith commission as the ongoing closed-door dialogues between the groups are sufficient to address the issues at hand, said Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin.

Despite the tensions drummed up recently - particularly over the use of the term ‘Allah’ - such a commission is not needed as there are already ongoing closed-door dialogues to enhance understanding and create a peaceful atmosphere and mutual respects, said Muhyiddin.

"We don't need an inter-faith commission. At the moment we don't feel that it is something necessary,” he was quoted as saying in a Bernama report.
    
"But continuous dialogues among various religious groups - representing Muslims and non-Muslims - could be useful," he told reporters after attending a dialogue on idealism among the younger generation at Angkasapuri in Kuala Lumpur today.

Many quarters had previously called for the establishment of an interfaith council to deliberate on religious matters.

Muslim groups, however, have maintained their reservations towards the set up of such a body, suspecting that its deliberations would focus more on intra-faith matters relating to Islam rather than discussing matters of concern common to all the religious communities.

Given the recent spate of incidents involving arson and vandalism against places of worship over the ‘Allah’ issue, calls for the revival of such an inter-faith body have seen a resurgence.

Figures within the opposition Pakatan Rakyat have stated the intention to initiate inter-faith dialogues throughout the country as part of steps towards the eventual formation of an inter-faith council.

Even former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad gave his support to such a council, where disputes could be discussed in a civil manner instead of taking them to the streets.

On the use of the word "Allah", Muhyiddin said closed-door discussions among religious organisations were ongoing and would continue.

"Sometimes it's better this way; this is a more dignified way as it doesn't involve any political interests,” said Muhyiddin.

“This is to find a meeting point, an understanding, and to create a peaceful atmosphere and mutual respect," he said.

Social media the way to go

At the event, Muhyiddin also held dialogues and explained the various issues affecting the country to students of University of Malaya, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia and Universiti Teknologi Mara as well as representatives of non-governmental organisations.
    
Earlier, Muhyiddin launched his official website, My-Malaysia, which among others, contains his political and community activities, collection of speeches as well as news reports of his activities in and outside the country.

Muhyiddin said the website was also an effort to reach out to the younger generation by listening to their views as well as criticisms.
    
"The younger generation wants a government which practices transparency; in other words, explaining and answering issues raised by the people," he said.
    
He noted that Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak himself actively interacts with the masses through his 1Malaysia website and social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook.
  
Cabinet ministers, said Muhyiddin, were also encouraged to interact with the people through the social media.

He warned, over, against the use of social media platforms in a way that exacerbated divisions within society.

"I would like to remind the people, however, to use the social media wisely and to be cautious when criticising because although we might have differences in opinion, we should express our views in a civil way," he said.