KUALA LUMPUR: The Federal Territory Islamic Religious Department (Jawi) is set to celebrate its landmark 50th anniversary early next year marking a significant milestone in its history.
As part of its five-decade journey, JAWI has reaffirmed its commitment to Khaira Ummah or the wellbeing of the ummah as it reminds Muslims to stay true to the Islamic way of life.
Albeit the challenging environment, JAWI, which is the policy implementation agency for the Federal Territory Islamic Religious Council (MAIWP) says it remains steadfast in its commitment to the concept, a slogan which serves as its official slogan in conjunction with its Golden Jubilee celebration on February 1, next year.
Khaira Ummah, which reflects Jawi's key milestones over 50 years of its establishment in empowering the ummah, is aligned to Malaysia Madani, which is not only focused on problem-solving but also on values to build good morals.
Formerly known as Urusetia Majlis (Council Secretariat), Jawi was incorporated on February 1, 1974 with the objective of strengthening the operations of MAIWP. It currently has three branches under its administration starting with Federal Territory Kuala Lumpur, followed by Labuan branch (April 16, 1984) and Putrajaya branch (Aug 1, 2001).
At present, Islam is facing numerous challenges on various forefronts in the contemporary world. The borderless nature of the digital world is open to exploitation by irresponsible quarters who take advantage of the platform by expanding their influence and to propagate teachings that deviate from the Islamic faith (akidah) and syariah, hence posing a plethora of challenges to the religious institutions in the country including Jawi.
Cognisant of the new threats, Jawi has also embraced technological change by fully leveraging the social media to counter the teachings that deviate from the Sunnah Wal Jamaah practised in the country and to spread the message of Islam effectively.
"Jawi as an agency in managing Islamic affairs is also actively engaged in the social media through creative content such as posters, infographics and short videos on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube, including setting up Radio Jawi and Jamek FM.
"Jawi also taps on the TikTok platform by adopting a relaxed stance in spreading the message of Islam amid the information explosion on the internet," Jawi Director Datuk Mohd Ajib Ismail told Bernama in an exclusive interview recently.
Despite the various initiatives undertaken, he said Jawi would not let its guard down by continuously monitoring these negative elements that deviate from the syariah and akidah principles by formulating an action plan in dealing with akidah issues and challenges in the social media.
The plan serves as a platform for Jawi to provide a better understanding of Islamic values among the community, hence curbing the spread of deviant teachings that go against the true teachings of Islam.
Reviewing its operations since inception, Mohd Ajib said the department has made great strides in strengthening unity of the ummah, including stamping out deviationist teachings such as the Millah Abraham that could potentially lead Muslims away from the principles of Sunnah Wal Jamaah.
He said Jawi believes that the social media platform should be fully utilised and all its initiatives and improvements would factor in the government's digitalisation policy and good governance in terms of service delivery to ensure that it does not lag behind other agencies.
JAWI'S KEY MILESTONES
As an agency under the Prime Minister's Department, Jawi has to address the various issues at hand head-on as it performs its lead role in administering and managing religious affairs in three federal territories.
In this respect, the management wisdom and maturity of the religious institutions play a key role, especially when faced with unprecedented challenges, including the onslaught of the Covid-19 pandemic, which is considered as among the major challenges faced by Jawi in its 50-year history.
Mohd Ajib who brings with him over 30 years of experience in managing Islamic affairs in the country said among the difficulties faced then (pandemic) included the decision related to Friday prayers.
"The decision taken was that no Friday prayers were allowed for a certain period due to two factors, namely the general wellness of congregants and the number of worshippers should be less than 40.
"Besides that, we also managed the deceased due to Covid-19 in addition to handing over several food packs to the people," he added.
Mohd Ajib said the Jawi Food Bank (JFB) is among the latest initiatives introduced by the agency in addition to 'Street Raya' programme which saw the participation of several Islamic religious institutions which took the opportunity to highlight the inclusiveness of Islam (Islam is for all times and places).
"The reality is, Jawi's responsibility has become more challenging than ever and is always regarded as a source of reference on a plethora of issues related to Islam," he said.
These include matters related to several major tragedies that shocked the nation such as the fire incident at Maahad Tahfiz Ittifaqiyah at Keramat Hujung, Kampung Datuk Keramat, Kuala Lumpur on September 14, 2017 which killed 21 students and two teachers.
Jawi led the group in managing the 23 victims who perished in the fire within 15 minutes. The average time taken to manage each victim took only about eight minutes and all of them were buried before 10 pm at several locations in the Klang Valley and Negri Sembilan.
Over the years since its inception, Jawi has made significant milestones and progress including setting up the Darul Hidayah Complex as a temporary shelter as well as a mualaf guidance and education centre which became operational in 2017.
To preserve the sanctity of Al-Quran, Jawi has set up the Darul Kalam, a centre that provides services for proper disposal of damaged texts or Quran materials according to the syarak (Islamic law).
JAWI'S PLANS
He said Jawi has also developed seven Raudhatul Sakinah Muslim Cemeteries (TPIRS) based on the concept of having a graveyard in the park equipped with various visitor-friendly facilities including e-pusara, an online system to manage the location of grave lots in the cemetery and also information on remains.
"In line with Jawi's motto, 'Sentiasa Dicontohi', our employees must always initiate in order to bring about positive change by embracing the principles of 'rejuvenate, speed, quality and integrity' to ensure the community's wellbeing is preserved," he added.
Hoping that the services provided by the department can be at par with the private sector, he said the Jawi Strategic Plan 2021-2025 has been formulated, anchoring on five key thrusts namely mosques, education, administration of mosques and surau, enforcement of Syariah laws, Islamic family affairs, research as well as organisational management and physical development.
Periodic reviews are carried out in line with current policies and agenda of the government such as the Malaysia Madani concept and the Al-Falah Religious Affairs Transformation Plan towards Malaysia Madani, he added.
Mohd Ajib said it is Jawi's priority to continue strengthening the functions and values of the mosque institution as the centre of knowledge, distribution of charitable funds and strengthening Muslim unity in line with its vision as a leader in managing Islamic religious affairs comprehensively for the ummah's wellbeing.
The institutions involved are 62 mosques, 610 suraus and 138 Friday suraus in the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and Labuan including five Jawi Integrated Islamic Primary Schools (SIRAJ), 71 Religious Primary Schools (SRA) and 125 Al-Quran and Fardu Ain classes.
"As part of its engagement activities with the community including vulnerable or marginalised groups such as People with Disabilities (PwD), homeless and communities that are involved in social issues, Jawi has undertaken the initiative by providing the 'Ilaj Home' in Seputeh which is expected to be operational soon as a centre for the protection and welfare of people living with Hiv/Aids (ODHA), based on Islamic treatment.
"Plans are also underway to develop Darul Kalam 2 as well as an Islamic information centre in the heart of the city besides empowering SIRAJ as a centre for producing more students with excellence both in this world and the hereafter," he said.
JAWI YESTERDAY AND TODAY
Jawi's commitment in empowering Islamic religious affairs in an efficient manner which includes adopting a new approach to providing its services and information to the Muslim community in the federal territory, has caught the attention of its staff alumni.
Among others, Datuk Abd Aziz Che Yacob, who has served the organisation for 18 years from December 1984 to November 1998 and later returned to Jawi in 2000 to 2005.
Reflecting on Jawi's growth, he said the department has undergone a major transformation with new initiatives that reflect the evolving landscape, a far cry from the situation when he was working with the department then.
Despite the paradigm shift, he said Jawi remains true to its original aspiration in encouraging Muslims to be guided by the Quran and sunnah - balanced and coherent intellectually, spiritually, emotionally and physically – albeit the challenges.
"While serving Jawi in the 80s, all tasks were carried out manually and face-to-face with the people who visited the department, going to the ground for various programmes and activities such as educational classes, courses, seminars, community engagements such as gotong-royong, and other activities.
"Jawi has also embraced technology so that it is not left out from the mainstream of development and I hope that the department will continue to be at the forefront in efforts toward engaging, guiding and addressing the issue of the ummah through technology by maximising all social media channels," he added.
Abd Aziz whose last post was as registrar of marriage, divorce and reconciliation, said the shortage of officers and limited financial allocations to Jawi in the early years of his service were among the main challenges faced by the department.
However, the issue was resolved through the restructuring of the organisation with large allocations provided to consolidate its operation and strengthening its role in managing Islamic affairs in the federal territory.
The last post Abd Aziz held was as Religious Officer at Istana Negara from 2009 to 2020, serving four Seri Paduka Baginda Yang di-Pertuan Agong (YDPA) including the 16th YDPA, Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah, before his retirement on July 22, 2020. He said the Agong is the head of the Islamic religion for the entire country including the states without Sultans including the federal territory and JAWI is one of the implementation agencies to manage Islamic affairs in the federal territory.
"Therefore, it is important for Jawi to establish good ties with the palace authority as part of efforts in fostering 'syiar Islam' (principles and teachings of Islam) through direct involvement in managing religious programmes, appointments and presentation of credentials of officers as well as departure of the Agong for Friday prayers, Aidil Fitri prayers, Aidil Adha prayers and officiating mosques in the federal territory.
TARGETING YOUNGER GENERATION
When asked on the most significant contribution Jawi has made in empowering Islam for the wellbeing of the ummah, he cited Jawi's effectiveness in strengthening the family institution by producing a generation who are resilient in facing life's challenges in the city.
This, he added, can be carried out through an integrated collaboration network with various agencies and other departments as strategic partners in promoting moral norms and values in Islam by turning to the religion for guidance in their daily life.
"Jawi at that time had introduced a programme on the Islamic way to a happy family as well as towards improving the wellbeing of the community in addition to mobilising efforts at managing the ummah's economy through a more effective zakat practices," he said.
While significant progress has been made over its 50-year history, there should be no grounds for complacency, he said, noting that Jawi should forge ahead in intensifying efforts and initiatives to uphold the principles of Islam and strengthening unity of the ummah.
As such, he said the best approach for Jawi is to target youths as the next generation of leaders who will continue to uphold the status of Islam and to have more Islamic programmes involving the group.
He also suggested that Jawi's dakwah (missionary) programmes be intensified with wider participation from all levels of the community, covering various professional groups as 'pendakwah' (Islamic preachers) and not confined to the asatizah (Islamic religious teachers).
"Jawi should also continue to forge strategic cooperation with various agencies, departments, organisations and the media as a team to realise its vision and mission for a wider impact on the community," he added.
As Jawi celebrates its golden jubilee, he hoped that the department would continue to take bold and courageous steps in addressing the increasingly complex issues facing the Muslim ummah. — Bernama