Jakim wasting public fund in this venture

Valentine’s Day luring youths away from Islam, sermon warns Friday February 14, 2014 12:47 PM GMT+8 ICYMI Tourists Tom and Kate taking their portrait at Love Lane, Penang for their valentine memory during their visit to here, February 14, 2014. Jakim has consistently opposed the celebration of Valentine’s Day among Muslims, claiming it possesses Christian elements.— Picture by K.E. OoiTourists Tom and Kate taking their portrait at Love Lane, Penang for their valentine memory during their visit to here, February 14, 2014. Jakim has consistently opposed the celebration of Valentine’s Day among Muslims, claiming it possesses Christian elements.— Picture by K.E. OoiKUALA LUMPUR, Feb 14 — Malaysia’s religious authority warned Muslims nationwide against celebrating Valentine’s Day today, which it said will push Muslims away from Islam and towards a certain disaster. In its official Friday sermon available online, the Malaysian Islamic Development Department (Jakim) also blamed the celebration of love for causing social ills such as fraud, abortion, baby dumping and alcohol consumption. “On this sacred and blessed day, we are in the mosque to hear a sermon and praise Allah’s might, but out there some Muslim youths might be involved in social ceremonies such as Valentine’s Day, that is celebrated by lovers,” according to the sermon available on its website. “Social ceremonies such as this are a stepping stone towards greater social ills such as fraud, mental disorder caused by alcohol, abortion and baby dumping, and other negative ills that can invite disaster and moral decay among youths” it added. In the sermon titled “Solid faith, excellent community”, Jakim warned Muslims against what it called “colonisation of the mind”, which led Muslims to ape Western culture, such as Valentine’s Day. It claimed that the celebration weakens the Muslim identity especially among the young, and threatens the future of the Muslim community as a whole. “Have hatred and disgust towards activities which are against our faith, code, and the human civilisation,” said the sermon. “Prevent yourselves from things which are prohibited such as free mingling between men and women, intoxicating drinks, and holding extreme social events where everything pushes Muslims away from the real teachings of Islam.” Jakim has consistently opposed the celebration of Valentine’s Day among Muslims, claiming it possesses Christian elements. The global celebration was banned during the 71st meeting of the National Fatwa Council Committee for Islamic Affairs in 2005. An anti-Valentine’s campaign called “Mind the Valentine’s Day Trap” has also been held by Jakim since 2011, where volunteers approach youths to warn them of the celebration’s alleged danger. In addition, previous sermons had accused the day of originally for worshipping ancient Roman deities, or celebrating the fall of Muslim rule in Cordoba, Andalusia, now in modern-day Spain. Islamic enforcement agencies also regularly hold raids on budget hotels and public parks, detaining and charging unmarried Muslim couples for khalwat, or being in close proximity with opposite sex. Originally a celebration of a Christian saint, Valentine’s Day has long taken a commercial nuance to celebrate romantic love and is vastly popular in East Asia. - See more at: http://www.themalaymailonline.com/malaysia/article/valentines-day-luring-youths-away-from-islam-sermon-warns#sthash.jaSE6BU6.dpuf

MARA and where is the money

No Mara loans, so 1,000 might have to drop out of college, study shows BY SHERIDAN MAHAVERA Published: 14 February 2016 6:59 AM Majlis Amanah Rakyat loans are a lifeline for many Bumiputera students but this year, a funding cut has resulted in many contemplating dropping out of private colleges. – The Malaysian Insider file pic, February 14, 2016.Majlis Amanah Rakyat loans are a lifeline for many Bumiputera students but this year, a funding cut has resulted in many contemplating dropping out of private colleges. – The Malaysian Insider file pic, February 14, 2016.Close to 1,000 new students in 33 private colleges are now finding it hard to continue their studies as Majlis Amanah Rakyat (Mara) has stopped giving out education loans, a study by the PKR Youth students' bureau shows. The finding has once again highlighted claims that government-linked aid for tertiary education is shrinking this year. Mara, meanwhile, was reported as saying on Friday that RM264 million has been allocated for students of its UniKL who complained they did not receive promised loans. The study also found that about 80% of the 945 students were studying in Mara-related colleges and had been promised loans. This included students from UniKL. Those in the non-Mara colleges had enrolled in the hopes of securing a loan midway through their studies, the study’s author Fahmi Zainol told The Malaysian Insider. About 80.7% are thinking of dropping out if they cannot secure a Mara loan, while 82% know a friend who has quit college because he or she cannot get a loan. “The conclusion from our study is that Mara does have a problem with giving out loans. Their online loan application facility has also stopped accepting applications,” said Fahmi, who is also PKR Youth student bureau chief. Fahmi (pic) said 43 of the 945 had to drop out because they could not get a loan. “Many of these kids had enrolled in their respective colleges beginning July last year. When they could not apply for a loan, they used their parents’ money to pay for the first semester. “But now, they are starting the second semester this year and they don’t know where they are going to get the money to pay for their studies. “That is why some students have dropped out after the first semester (in July),” Fahmi said, adding that more than 90% of the study’s respondents felt troubled by their financial situation. Fahmi said the students have been told that they have to pay their second semester fees by May. Failure to do so would mean they will not be able to continue. Of the 33 institutions, nine are Mara polytechnics in Johor, Pahang, Kedah and Kelantan. The rest are private colleges in Kuala Lumpur, Kedah, Malacca, Johor, Terengganu, Penang and Selangor. Two are overseas universities – Sunderland University in London, United Kingdom and University of Mansoura, Egypt. The 945 students have also written in to an online complaint centre which the bureau set up. “But we verified their complaints by visiting the universities in the list to talk to a sample group of students,” said Fahmi. On February 10, PKR secretary-general Rafizi Ramli also urged Mara to come clean on its loan programmes. Putrajaya’s ability to continue funding tertiary education was also highlighted when in January it announced that the much-sought after Public Service Department (PSD) scholarship programmes would be continued. Najib’s announcement, however, said Bukit Bendera MP Zairil Khir Johari, was accompanied by funding cuts of between 21% and 60% for all four programmes under PSD. – February 14, 2016. - See more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/no-mara-loans-so-close-to-1000-might-have-to-drop-out-of-college-study-show#sthash.TGd4VOPr.MQQxIXYx.dpuf

wasting money and tax payers' fund

http://www.malaysiandigest.com/features/594113-pas-mp-did-not-settle-the-hotel-bill-after-watching-paid-porn-in-germany.html PAS MP Did Not Settle The Hotel Bill After Watching Paid Porn In Germany? KUALA LUMPUR: Despite PAS not being a member of Pakatan Harapan and is DAP's biggest rival, the allegation that a PAS leader watched pornographic films was surprisingly denied by its former coalition partner. DAP Bukit Bendera Member of Parliament, Zairil Khir Johari, said that even though they are from the rival party, he will not smear the name of any leader through contemptible means to gain popularity. "It is not true! Although Nasruddin and I disagree in politics, I do not condone publicly shaming someone personally like this," he said through a WhatsApp message sent to a news portal. Earlier, a pro-Parti Amanah Negara (PAN) website, Alhusseyn51, claimed in an article published two weeks ago that a PAS MP did not make payment after watching a paid pornographic channel. The embarrassing ordeal was uncovered through an additional payment that was charged to the hotel bill during a work visit of several members of parliament to Germany two years ago. Although he did not name the PAS assemblyman in his entry, the blogger seemingly gave a hint by naming all the delegates who were involved in the visit that was organised by the German government in January 2014. Among the delegates that represented BN were Minister in the Prime Minister's Department, Nancy Shukri; Deputy Minister of Education, Datuk P. Kamalanathan; Deputy Minister of Home Affairs, Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed and Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Koh Nai Kwong. Meanwhile, the delegates that represented the opposition were Fuziah Salleh from PKR, Nasruddin Hassan from PAS and Zairil Khir Johari from DAP. According to the PAN-friendly blog, the PAS delegate failed to show himself during the visit and a meeting that was scheduled because he was reported to be sick and only rested in his room. The blog also claimed that the DAP representative was shocked to find the PAS representative's room bill being charged for watching pornographic films upon checking out. However, when asked again if the PAS representative failed to attend the meeting was true, Zairil reportedly declined to elaborate.

Najib flies no where for now

http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/rm690-million-to-maintain-private-jet-pkr-reveals RM690 million to maintain PM’s private jet, PKR reveals BY ELIZABETH ZACHARIAH Published: 31 March 2015 12:59 PM | Updated: 31 March 2015 3:54 PM PKR's Rafizi Ramli said today that Putrajaya will spend some RM690 million to maintain a newly-acquired private jet for the next 15 years. – The Malaysian Insider pic, March 31, 2015.PKR's Rafizi Ramli said today that Putrajaya will spend some RM690 million to maintain a newly-acquired private jet for the next 15 years. – The Malaysian Insider pic, March 31, 2015.Putrajaya will spend some RM690 million to maintain a newly-acquired private jet used by the prime minister for the next 15 years, PKR's Rafizi Ramli revealed today. He said that the cost including services to maintain an older private jet for the next seven years, the total costs for operation, maintenance and management (OMM) of both aircraft would come to a whopping RM1.098 billion. "The contract for OMM for the new ACJ320 jet shows that the costs have been set at RM46 million per year. This means that in the next 15 years, when the hire purchase agreement ends, the total OMM costs will be RM690 million," he said in a press conference at the Parliament lobby today. Rafizi also said that the total cost of both private jets, including purchase and servicing, would cost the government almost RM1.6 billion over the next 15 years. "This means that Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak cannot scream if the people feel that a part of the GST (goods and services tax) they are paying would be used to maintain his lavish lifestyle and that of his Cabinet ministers in using the private jets," the Pandan MP said. The older private jet, an ACJ319, was bought in 2007. Putrajaya has spent RM304 million for the OMM costs of the jet so far. Rafizi revealed two weeks ago that Putrajaya had ordered a new private aircraft for Najib's use, which was later confirmed by the Prime Minister's Office. The Prime Minister's Office said that the Airbus corporate jetliner was bought to replace the 16-year-old Boeing business jet. Rafizi said that the new purchase brought the tally to seven aircraft owned by the government. Last week, Rafizi said that Putrajaya paid an excess of RM109 million for the latest private jet from Jet Premier One (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd‎ (JPO), a private company that had acquired the aircraft from Air Luther AG. He said this amount was derived from the current market value of the ACJ320 compared to the price the Malaysian government had paid to JPO. "JPO sold the ACJ320 private jet at a hire purchase price, causing Putrajaya to pay a higher price from the cost that it would incur if it had bought the jet itself, without JPO," he added. – March 31, 2015. - See more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/rm690-million-to-maintain-private-jet-pkr-reveals#sthash.qrCH569Z.dpuf

Jakim wasting public fund

http://www.themalaymailonline.com/malaysia/article/report-malaysias-mission-schools-facing-islamisation-with-alleged-conversio Report: Malaysia’s mission schools facing Islamisation with alleged conversions Friday February 12, 2016 08:36 PM GMT+8 ICYMI A Catholic nun has expressed concern that Malaysia’s Christian mission schools were allegedly facing a push in Islamic agenda. — Bernama file picA Catholic nun has expressed concern that Malaysia’s Christian mission schools were allegedly facing a push in Islamic agenda. — Bernama file picKUALA LUMPUR, Feb 12 — Malaysia’s mission schools are now allegedly facing a push in Islamic agenda with conversions of non-Muslim students said to be taking place, according to a report by an Asian Catholic news site. In the report, Sister Rita Chew, who heads the Catholic Church’s Archdiocese of Kota Kinabalu’s education commission, spoke of her concern regarding the push for Islamic influence in the schools. “Some people seem very intent on pushing an Islamic agenda right from kindergarten,” the nun was quoted saying in a report by Union of Catholic Asian News (UCAN) yesterday. “This is our chief concern. Conversions are taking place in schools but they (the government) are denying it. It’s happening in the kindergartens. Christian parents are discovering their children are learning Islamic prayers.” The news site said religious conversions are reportedly taking place in all schools except private schools, and not just mission schools, while also claiming that there is a bias against non-Muslim students at schools. Chew reportedly said it appeared as if Muslim missionary groups are racing to re-classify Sabah and Sarawak as “Islamic”, allegedly with the government’s approval. Sabah and Sarawak, where Christians traditionally form a sizeable part of the population, are where half of Malaysia’s mission schools are located. Out of the 448 Christian and mission schools in Malaysia, 130 and 98 are in Sarawak and Sabah respectively. UCAN also cited a list of incidents of alleged racial and religious bias happening in local schools, including a 2013 incident of non-Muslim students made to eat in the school’s restroom during the Muslim fasting month. Other incident included the appointment of a Muslim religious teacher to be a Sarawak mission school’s principal, and Christian students being barred from acknowledging their faith in a learning institute. It also cited a letter from a Sarawak group of Christian parents in 2010 to the teachers’ union head expressing their unhappiness with a school changing their children’s official status to Malay -- which in Malaysia means the individual is constitutionally a Muslim. Citing a retired educator who declined to have her name disclosed, UCAN reported however that many Muslim parents favour mission schools for their children as they are seen as being focused on excellence and a rounded education, compared to government schools that are reputedly pro-Malay and Islamic-focused. “The focus there is exams and result oriented ... not an open, all round education or knowledge, which is what parents also want for their children,” the retired teacher said. A Muslim mother identified only as Siti, herself a mission school graduate, claimed that her daughter in a mission school had more confidence in contrast to her national school graduate son. The news portal said most of Malaysia’s mission schools are government-aided state schools with government-paid staff, while churches own the school property and has a board of governors to administer the school. The church authorities’ privilege to nominate qualified individuals to be principal have become gradually chipped away, UCAN said, later explaining that mission schools accepted government aid starting from the 1970s when they could no longer be self-supporting. - See more at: http://www.themalaymailonline.com/malaysia/article/report-malaysias-mission-schools-facing-islamisation-with-alleged-conversio#sthash.b40AciHz.dpuf

RM1b gone to Najib annually

http://www.themalaymailonline.com/malaysia/article/deputy-minister-jakim-should-get-more-than-rm1b-to-fight-is-liberalism-lgbt Deputy minister: Jakim should get more than RM1b to fight IS, liberalism, LGBT Sunday November 22, 2015 07:55 PM GMT+8 ICYMI People praying at Masjid Jamek in Kuala Lumpur. Datuk Dr Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki said today that it was time for the allowances of imams, religious teachers and staff throughout Malaysia to be reviewed for an increase, seeing that their responsibility in safeguarding Islam is even more challenging today. — Picture by Choo Choy MayPeople praying at Masjid Jamek in Kuala Lumpur. Datuk Dr Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki said today that it was time for the allowances of imams, religious teachers and staff throughout Malaysia to be reviewed for an increase, seeing that their responsibility in safeguarding Islam is even more challenging today. — Picture by Choo Choy MayKUALA LUMPUR, Nov 22 — Malaysia’s federal Islamic authority should get more than RM1 billion for its 2016 Budget if it is to better combat “extremist” ideologies like the Islamic State (IS), and even liberalism, pluralism and the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community, a senator said today. Datuk Dr Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki who is also deputy minister in charge of Islamic affairs said the RM724.6 million set aside for the Department of Islamic Development (Jakim) next year was not sufficient. He pointed out that Jakim manages the allowances of more than 30,000 religious teachers and almost 15,000 imams in the country. “Therefore, we thank those who raised this issue that will hopefully open up the government’s eyes so that they will increase Jakim’s allocation next year to address increasingly critical needs, especially in countering groups who try to deny Islam’s status as the religion of the federation,” Asyraf Wajdi said in a statement on his Facebook page. “It’s time for the allowances of imams, religious teachers and staff throughout Malaysia to be reviewed for an increase (this year alone, the allocation of allowances for imams and religious teachers amounted close to RM500 million), seeing that their responsibility in safeguarding Islam is even more challenging today with plenty of extremist ideologies that are starting to take root, such as IS, the liberalism ideology and pluralism, including the LGBTs who loosen and degrade religion,” he added. The deputy minister was responding to a report by news portal The Malaysian Insider today that detailed how Jakim spent its RM819 million allocation this year, based on information from the Treasury’s website. Jakim’s public relations officer told The Malaysian Insider that Jakim’s financial history and audited accounts were not publicly available. The religious authorities in Malaysia have long demonised the LGBT community and viewpoints that challenge their conservative interpretations of Islam. Jakim has been put under the spotlight after Tawfik Ismail, member of G25, a pro-moderation group comprising retired high-ranking civil servants, recently suggested the abolition of the federal agency. He told The Malaysian Insider that Jakim served no actual purpose beyond interfering in the lives of Muslims. - See more at: http://www.themalaymailonline.com/malaysia/article/deputy-minister-jakim-should-get-more-than-rm1b-to-fight-is-liberalism-lgbt#sthash.NvooTd67.dpuf

here go your money to questioned Islamic groups for decades

Deputy minister admits Putrajaya funds Islamic groups, including Isma BY IDA LIM Saturday February 13, 2016 08:18 PM GMT+8 ICYMI The federal government has been giving financial support to Islamic groups. — Picture by Yusof Mat IsaThe federal government has been giving financial support to Islamic groups. — Picture by Yusof Mat IsaBANGI, Feb 13 — The federal government has been giving financial support to Islamic groups, which also included controversial Islamist group Ikatan Muslimin Malaysia (Isma), deputy minister Datuk Dr Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki confirmed today. Asyraf said most local Muslim non-governmental organisations (NGOs) still hope for government support, but explained that the groups could also tap into the corporate social responsibility (CSR) funds of government-linked companies (GLCs). “We are among the Islamic countries where the government gives direct funding to Muslim NGOs, [including] in the form of annual grants to help in [their] administration,” the deputy minister in the Prime Minister’s Department overseeing Islamic affairs said in a speech here. “That is since my student days as president of the National Union of Malaysian Muslim Students, we received funding for administration from the Youth and Sports Ministry, the Prime Minister’s Department. “That is given to almost all Islamic NGOs, whether it is Abim, Ikram, Isma, ulama association and so on — whether in the form of annual grants or programmes,” he added while launching Malaysian Consultative Council of Islamic Organisation’s (Mapim) headquarters here. Asyraf Wajdi said the early days of Islamic activism saw the existence of only five or six Islamic groups, while there are now hundreds registered. “At that time, Abim, Al-Arqam, Perkim, carried out programmes together with the government to carry out dakwah months that give such impact to Muslims in terms of religious awareness and understanding,” he said, using the Arabic-Malay word that means “preaching”. Al-Arqam is the now banned and defunct Islamic sect, which was decreed “deviant” in 1994. Abim refers to Malaysian Islamic Youth Movement, while Perkim is the Muslim Welfare Organisation of Malaysia. Commenting on Mapim president Mohd Azmi Abdul Hamid’s remark in an earlier speech that non-Muslim civil society was far more advanced than its Muslim counterpart, Asyraf Wajdi suggested that this was due to the latter working in “silos”. He said Muslims in Malaysia are generous, but usually waste human resources and money by failing to coordinate their efforts. Asyraf also suggested for Muslim groups to pull together funds from GLCs, citing his own success collecting RM10.5 million in just two weeks to restore flood-ravaged mosques in Kelantan, with help from both Putrajaya and GLC’s CSR funds. He also explained that Islamic banks typically have two sets of welfare funds that can benefit Muslim groups — zakat, or tithe, and funds of non-Shariah-compliant cash that needed to be purified. “But not many people take advantage of these funds,” he said of the latter category, highlighting that Malaysia has 18 Islamic banking subsidiaries, 10 takaful funds and “Islamic windows” in 27 institutions - See more at: http://www.themalaymailonline.com/malaysia/article/deputy-minister-admits-putrajaya-funds-islamic-groups-including-isma#sthash.DNAe6zWx.rB9Xhs9J.dpuf