Nas Daily puts the spotlight on Malaysia as influencer forks out US$150k for Caribbean passport

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Nuseir Yassin, founder of Nas Daily, recently spent US$150,000 on a passport from Saint Kitts and Nevis in the Caribbean just to enter Malaysia. Yassin (pictured) is an Israel citizen, but Malaysia has no diplomatic relations with Israel. In a Facebook video, Yassin said: "For a country I was banned from, I was shocked at how friendly everyone was." He was also initially scared to enter Malaysia as he thought "[he] was not wanted".

Safe to say, his impression of Malaysia was a positive one as he praised the country for having plenty of greenery and delicious food. He added that everything in Malaysia was "70% cheaper than Singapore", explaining that a main meal costs about US$3. Yassin also described the culture in Malaysia to be "colourful" and marvelled at the historic Portuguese homes in Melaka, adding that it has "amazing vibes". He was also amazed at the river cafes, churches, temples, and the streets filled with delicious food.

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1802431243452212

"Governments are different from people. Governments may ban each other, fight each other, but people do not have to. Deep down inside, people just want to connect," he concluded in the video.

Meanwhile, Malaysia's Immigration Department director-general Khairul Dzaimee Daud explained that Yassin has two citizenships - Israel and Saint Kitts and Nevis. He entered and left Malaysia using the Saint Kitts and Nevis passport and according to Bernama, is said to have entered Singapore using the Israeli passport. Khairul Dzaimee added that Yassin was permitted to enter Malaysia on a tourist visa using his Saint Kitts and Nevis passport as he did not have any offences under immigration regulations, Bernama added.

Nas Daily is known for its videos that showcase various cultures, unique places globally and societal challenges. In 2019, Yassin moved his company from the US to Singapore as the latter is the hub of Asia. Since then, he has expanded into Dubai and created a Facebook page for his Indonesian fans.

Last year, Yassin came under the spotlight after he was alleged to have disrespected Filipino culture. Founder of The Cacao Project, Louise Mabulo, shared that in 2019, Yassin came to her town to cover her story on The Cacao Project and her family welcomed him as a guest. She alleged that he "imitated and mocked the local accent and language, vocalising Tagalog-sounding syllabic phrases saying it sounded stupid". According to her, Yassin also allegedly said "no one wants to hear about farmers or farms" and that it is "not clickable viewable content".

In response, Yassin said the team's investigation showed that Louise Mabulo's story in the media is false. "There are no '200 farmers' that you work with, and there are no Cacao plantations that you don't personally profit from," he added. Despite travelling for two days just to meet with Mabulo, Yassin said the team left because he will "never ever put fake news on Nas Daily". He also alleged that The Cacao Project is a family business from which Mabulo profits and advised her to be truthful about her work.

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