In a sincere and Samaritan like effort to help all levels of society, the Islamic Dakwah Foundation of Malaysia (YADIM) Sabah on 27th October made the initiative to handle non-Muslim houses of worship caretakers in a number of locations there.
Islamic authorities and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) are encouraged to be kind to the asnaf community (underprivileged). The objective is to minimise the problem of missing out in the process of directing resources to these communities, in particular those impacted by the Covid-19 outbreak .
According to YADIM Sabah Director Samin Ongki, his party received complaints from individuals claiming to have been excluded from the list of recipients.
In Sabah, the Sabah Zakat Centre offers monthly aid to those severely impacted by Covid-19. However, such aid has not reached everyone, of course, and it is not enough. Thus, this is the task of our federal and state religious institutions, in addition to Islamic NGOs, to come forward and take advantage of the list of asnaf communities available to us in religious offices or mosques to help them receive aid.
“We are concerned that some entities have fallen out from the list, while some have not received any funds at all,” he said when met by reporters after offering food donations to the caretakers of non-Muslim houses of worship here on Tuesday.
Samin added that information with regards to the recipients needs to be managed at the level of the District Office or the Sabah Islamic Religious Affairs Department (JAHEINS) and a name of list of the underprivileged must be given to the appropriate parties, including Islamic NGOs, in order for them to present the donations.
Touching on the provision of support to non-Muslims, he said, it is indeed part of the foundation’s operations, which did not focus exclusively on Muslims.
In a nutshell, it is equally important for one to make a contribution to society regardless of religion. Malaysia, a country blessed with a melting pot of races only proves that it is vital to support each other, in order for the nation to prosper greatly. We need to carry each other’s burden, as we are all in this together!
Source: Astro Awani
