Rilek1Corner

Tag: Suara Musyawarah

  • Time for Muslim MPs To Take a Stand on Malay and Muslim Issues

    jumblatt-opt--1--jpg_153257
    Photo Credit: Yahoo SG

    faisalmanapWP

    WP MP Faisal Manap raises some concerns of Muslims, as expressed in the Suara Musyawarah Report, in Parliament.

    Instead of addressing the issue head-on, PAP Muslim MPs tries to corner Faisal into taking a stand on the issue (which he didn’t, and i think he should have). Later, the MPs were either silent on the issue or tried to skirt it, or even deny it.

    Now i have a few questions for the Muslim MPs:

    1) Is the Suara Musyawarah Report not commissioned by the government? If so, what is the follow-up?

    2) What is the attitude of the Muslim MPs towards the report? Take what you like from it, and ignore what you don’t?

    3) If the latter is the case, why have the report in the first place?

    4) Even IF those things stated are not true, those are indeed the perceptions of many Muslims. Will you address those perceptions with facts and figures, and reasoned argumentation? Or will those just be dismissed or ignored?

    I call upon them to take a stand on these issues/questions, in the name of constructive politics.

    Authored by Walid Jumblatt Abdullah

    Walid Jumblatt Abdullah, a public-spirited individual, is an ongoing Political Science student of the National University of Singapore (NUS). He is a three-times award recipient of the Graduate Student Teaching (GSTA) Award Honour Roll in 2012. In the recent NUS Commencement Week, he was also selected as the Valedictorian of his cohort.

     

    EDITOR’S NOTE

    Seems like both parties cranked up their engines harder this time round with fancy new measures and proposals. The announcement on setting up of WP Malay/Muslim committee to oversee concerns faced by the community should have been done way much earlier. Nevertheless, it’s better late than never. We applaud WP to help the community alongside PAP. Having two different approaches and perspectives to issues will definitely result in expedited progress, only if sole focus is on the community, and not about the respective parties and what’s important to them.

    We are glad that more and more Muslims are speaking up for what’s good for their community. This is our country and in a significant way, we have the right to decide our future. As long that discussions are not baseless and no vulgarities involved, someday somehow someone will hear us.

    letters to R1C

  • Workers’ Party: Set Up Committee to Address Malay-Muslim Concerns

    faisalmanapWP

    SINGAPORE – Mr Muhamad Faisal Abdul Manap of the Workers’ Party yesterday called for the formation of a committee to address concerns of Malay-Muslims over how their loyalty to the nation is viewed.

    But in a swift rebuttal, Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Education and Manpower Hawazi Daipi deemed his suggestion unnecessary as this was an issue that could be overcome by strengthening inter-racial ties.

    The exchange began with Mr Faisal saying that more needed to be done to “address and find solutions” to community concerns highlighted in a recent report. He quoted the findings of the Suara Musyawarah committee, which said Malay-Muslim participants felt left out in certain policies and practices which “question the loyalty of Malays to the country”.

    The committee was formed in 2012 to gather feedback on the thoughts, concerns and aspirations of Malay-Muslims. Its report highlighted personal accounts of employers expressing a preference for non-Malay workers and surfaced concerns over exclusion from certain parts of the Singapore Armed Forces.

    Mr Faisal acknowledged that progress has been made in terms of opportunities afforded to Malay-Muslims in education and national service, but said the committee’s formation could offer a “quick solution” to achieving a “more inclusive and open Singapore society”.

    Responding to his speech, Mr Hawazi and Mr Zainal Sapari (Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC) later asked Mr Faisal if the latter had ever felt that his loyalty to the country was questioned, and what his own views on the issue were.

    “I’m concerned (that) if we highlight the differences, we will be widening (them) not only among one community but all communities,” said Mr Hawazi, adding that schools and community activities are means to forge greater social cohesion.

    In response, Mr Faisal stressed that the issue of loyalty among Malays was surfaced by the Suara Musyawarah report, and not him.

    Mr Hawazi then suggested that Mr Faisal had cherry-picked portions of the report, failing to highlight, for example, that Malay-Muslim participants also said they were “very committed” to Singapore on issues that include defence and security.

    Maintaining that he was reflecting concerns on the ground, Mr Faisal said: “I have said in my view that I am aware and agree there is progress made, but because there are still many people who say that this issue is present, I, as a voice of the people, would like to voice it out.”

    Source: The Straits Times

    READ MORE ON WORKER’S PARTY RELATED ARTICLES

    letters to R1C

     

  • PAP New Face: Malay Muslim Lawyer Set to Champion Social Mobility Issues

     

     

    SINGAPORE: A new face, who could be a potential election candidate for the People’s Action Party, was spotted at the groundbreaking ceremony for a new integrated development in Woodlands on Saturday.

    He was later introduced to the media by Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Education and Manpower Hawazi Daipi – who is also the MP for Marsiling division of Sembawang GRC.

    He is 35-year-old Amrin Amin, a corporate lawyer with Watson, Farley and Williams Asia Practice LLP.

    Amrin, a member of Marsiling’s Citizens’ Consultative Committee for about a year, has been helping with Meet-the-People sessions.

    Previously, he was a member of the Chong Pang CCC since 2004.

    He was also a legislative assistant to Law Minister K Shanmugam.

    A MUIS scholar, he also spent four years in New York studying and working.

    He is also on the board of Nanyang Polytechnic and serves in the National Council on Problem Gambling.

    Mr Hawazi said: “The party (PAP) always looks to younger Singaporeans to consider and to offer themselves as potential candidates of the party.

    “While I look at Amrin as someone who has the potential to be a candidate, it depends very much on him and whether the party assesses he can do the job in serving the community and Singapore.

    “I’m sure Amrin has all the attributes needed to serve the community and the country and you’ll have to ask whether he would be ready.

    “But the opportunities for him to contribute are immense and the opportunities for us to benefit from the services of young men and women like him are also immense.

    “So far in the last one year and at MPS, I think it has benefited both sides.”

    Amrin said: “It’s too early at this stage to discuss whether I’m ready. I think I have much to learn and I’m very happy the reception from residents has been very, very kind.

    “I’m very passionate on social mobility and youth development. I think these are two very important issues and perhaps the defining issues of our time.”

     

    Source: CNA