Rilek1Corner

Category: Singapuraku

  • Commentary: Muslim Leaders, What Are You All Doing?

    Commentary: Muslim Leaders, What Are You All Doing?

    When Muhammad Al-Fatih conquered Constantinople, he ensured that his troops were spiritually primed and he as the Sultan was foremost in ensuring that they were of righteous conduct and his own character and spirituality were unsurpassed to lead them into battle.

    He mirrored the likes of his prestigious predecessors, Umar Al-Khattab and Salahuddin Al-Ayyubi who both conquered Jerusalem during their time.

    How many of the so-called Muslim leaders today, who cry so much about defending the legitimate rights of the Palestinians to their own free homeland and East Jerusalem as its capital, are clean of corruptions, not oppressors themselves, utterly silent towards other wrongs being committed before them and worst, even colludes with evil, to qualify as worthy of championing such a noble cause, let alone send their troops to fight?

     

     

    Source: Damanhuri Bin Abas

  • Pakcik Hari-Hari Berdoa Agar Strike TOTO

    Pakcik Hari-Hari Berdoa Agar Strike TOTO

    Am walking towards Mawaddah Mosque 2 days ago for Friday prayers.

    It was a long walk from my place.

    Saw the pakcik TOTO fram afar and I increase my speed and finally caught up with him.

    ” assalamualaikum cik…”
    ” Wa alai Kum salam… Kau lagi.. mana2 kau Ada. Tak kerja ke?”
    “Saya Mana kerja cik, saya makan hasil bini…. ”
    “Untung kau.. pakcik kerja guard dah 20 tahun lebih.. istri pakcik Pat rumah jaga anak…”
    “Cik nak gi Mana ni?”
    “Go solat jumaat lah….”

    At this point I’m trying change the topic and ask him about the TOTO results..

    “It Hari cik beli TOTO Kena Tak?”
    “Takde rezeki lah…”
    “Ohhhh.. nanti cik doa lebih supaya rezki cik bertambah dan Tak payah lah cik beli TOTO lagik….”
    “Tahulah…. Hari2 cik doa supaya cik kena TOTO… Kita merancang, tuhan menentukan”

    In amacham cakap?? Tak tahu lagi macam Mana nak nasihat orang mcm ni…..

     

     

    Source: Encik Gambir

  • Commentary: Is MUIS The Problem Or The Solution? Are They ‘Really There’?

    Commentary: Is MUIS The Problem Or The Solution? Are They ‘Really There’?

    Is MUIS the problem or the solution?

    While the world express vociferous objections towards Donald trump for his blatant acts of provocation, our beloved MUIS is seen as being indifferent and muted towards the situation.

    MUIS, for the longest time, has not been the representative of the Malay/Muslim community in Singapore.

    It is not capable of expressing the sentiments and advancing the aspirations of the community. Its fecklessness is due to 2 crucial factors.

    1. It receives funding from the gov.

    2. The leadership of MUIS is not elected by the community but rather installed and approved by PAP gov

    MUIS is the highest governing body for the Muslims in Singapore. We placed our hope that it acts for the best of our interest. Yet, MUIS has been found wanting on numerous occasions.

    There are many instances where MUIS has taken on the narrative of the gov and became part of the state propaganda.

    It has no organizational backbone to have views contrary to the state. It operates as if it has to take directives from the gov and wait for instructions on views deemed sensitive. This shows a clear lack of autonomy and of a weak leadership.

    Frequently, the views or statements from MUIS mirrors those of the gov. In doing so, it runs the risk of being seen as subservient to a secular gov. It often uses weak justifications and rationale to which this PAP gov is known for.

    Ive not read any statements from MUIS that are different from those of the PAP gov. Issues like;

    – Tudung
    – The banning of Mufti Menk
    – Yusof Estes being denied entry
    – The discrimination faced by our community in the workforce
    – The Rohingyas
    – The Palestinians

    The list goes on. The near absence of the Malay/Muslim political voice in Singapore is reflected in how MUIS conducts itself on a national level.

    If MUIS continues to be emasculated, and act only for its self-interest, then it will not be a surprise should one day, it becomes irrelevant to the very community it is supposed to serve.

    If that happens, there’s a high chance that the community may seek other avenues for its spiritual consumption and with it, comes the real chance of radicalization slowly growing its base.

     

    Source: Khan Osman Sulaiman

  • American-Muslim Preacher Yusuf Estes’s Views Not A Threat To Social Harmony

    American-Muslim Preacher Yusuf Estes’s Views Not A Threat To Social Harmony

    As a Christian, I do not see how the views of American-Muslim preacher Yusuf Estes denigrate the Christian faith or “damage social harmony”, by claiming that it is “not part of Islam to celebrate other people’s holidays” or questioning the religious basis for Christmas. (“S’pore blocks American-Muslim preacher from entering to preach on Islamic-themed cruise”, Dec 2)

    A Muslim is fully entitled to refrain from participating in religious festivities of other religions.

    Article 16(3) of the Singapore Constitution guarantees that no person shall be required to receive instruction in or to take part in any ceremony or act of worship of a religion other than his own.

    In a 1999 case, the Singapore Court of Appeal explained that this is meant to protect a person’s right to choose his own religion. For example, a Muslim cannot be “required to take part in” a Christian ceremony such as the Holy Communion.

    Furthermore, Estes’ view that Christmas was ‘from the Solstice celebration, and had been going on for hundreds of years before the time of Jesus’, is neither new nor offensive.

    It is a widely known among many scholars that Jesus Christ was not born on Dec 25 of 1 AD.

    Historians and Christian scholars alike recognise that the ancient Roman Empire celebrated Saturnalia, a winter solstice festival, at or about the time of Dec 25 each year.

    According to Sam Moorhead of the British Museum, after the Roman Empire embraced Christianity as its official religion, Saturnalia was incorporated as a Christian holy day.

    While many Christians celebrate Christmas, there are also those who do not.

    The discussion is an ongoing one, among Christians and non-Christians alike, as to the origins of Christmas or whether it is acceptable to “redeem” such ancient Roman festivals. This is a natural and reasonable exercise of freedom of speech and religion.

    However, it is quite another thing for the Government to stifle the discussion by deeming certain perspectives as offensive or denigratory.

    In order to promote respect for religious freedom and harmony, the right of every person to pursue religious truth and live in line with his conscience should be respected and upheld. Short of real threats to public order, health or morality, the Government should respect the right of every person to profess, practise and propagate his religion.

     

    Source: todayonline

  • Muslimahs At Workplaces – Gain Your Bosses’ Trust First

    Muslimahs At Workplaces – Gain Your Bosses’ Trust First

    Some workplace, tak benarkan kita pakai pakaian yang “terlalu” muslimah (baggy clothes/tudung labuh).

    After 11 years of working and jumping around few MNCs and gov offices, first time, boss aku talk to me about “professional attire”.

    Aku is vendor. Engineer dari lain company giving service to another company. So he told me, dia nak aku dress professionally and deliver expertise aku accordingly. Aku faham apa dia trying to say bila dia tengok aku atas bawah.

    He shared with me, dia taknak ada incident where he will be asked not to take “muslimah” again sebab diorang pernah encounter banyak problem with the previous muslimah.

    Waktu solat takes forever.
    Bila bercakap, tak tapis. Nak jaga with non mahram sampai appear rude.
    Dressing terlalu labuh/extreme.
    Datang kerja lambat.
    Buat kerja selalu ada mistakes.
    Bila ada mistakes, tak own up. Argue.

    Aku pernah ada staff muslimah.
    Bila kerja, mulut dia kumat kamit. Prolly berzikir.
    I dont have any problem with that.
    I dont have problem with dressing as well.
    But kita selalu kena be mindful of other religion and race. Nak baca apape.. jangan lah sampai macam tengah berjampi. Maybe ada orang tak selesa.

    And masa tu, aku was fronting auditors for my team. And tiap kali auditor spot a mistake, mesti it comes from this lady. Everyday datang lambat. Masuk waktu solat, hilang almost 45 mins. Pastu argue je.. dengan boss. Dia try to gunakan aku as a shield but aku, time kerja, kerja. Time friends, friends.

    So aku share skit, aku stick to black bila masuk office. So “nampak” professional. Tudung je tukar2 color. Try to wear baju office gi office. Baju kurung ke, jubah ke, maybe boleh pakai on Friday. On weekdays, you can wear palazzo/skirt and tops labuh.

    But one thing aku paling jaga is timing pergi balik office and work performance. Jangan lambat masuk office. Orang benci those yang tak datang on time tapi nak balik on time.
    Those yang tak jaga break time. Tak pernah ada dekat desk. Kalau nak gi solat pon, tu bukan company bapak kita. So plan your time wisely. Jangan sampai mulut orang kata “amik muslimah, nak kena put on radar. Because they are so irresponsible”.

    Bila boss aku amik aku, he told me honestly that dia akan put aku on radar, and aku baru dapat lepas his hook sebab aku selalu available bila clients ke customer carik.

    Jangan busukkan nama muslimah. Be a professional productive muslimah.

    Then once boss da percaya, nak pakai sari gi kerja.. pakailah..

     

    Source: Nisa Tahir