The National Tahfiz Council which aims to improve tahfiz institutions is expected to be launched in the first quarter of this year, said Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Mujahid Yusof Rawa.
He said that discussions will be held before that with the relevant bodies, including registered tahfiz school operators and non-governmental organisations involved in managing them.
“Through the discussions, we hope to come up with a resolution to form the National Tahfiz Council,” he told Bernama after a visit to the Sungai Ruil Orang Asli Settlement in Cameron Highlands today.
Mujahid was commenting on a statement by Johor regent Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim on his official Facebook account yesterday that the time had come for the National Tahfiz Council to be set up as the number of private tahfiz schools had increased.
Tuanku Ismail had said that he hoped the process of registering the tahfiz schools would be quick so as to ensure that the school buildings were safe and abided by the safety standards of the Malaysian Fire and Rescue Department (JBPM).
According to Mujahid, the council would be a platform to discuss the five areas, namely laws and their implementation, introduce a model for recognised tahfiz institutions, ensure that the education curriculum of tahfiz schools was in line with mainstream education, strengthen the administration of tahfiz institutions and establish a system to recognise and certify tahfiz institutions.
“We have the national tahfiz education policy...we know the tahfiz are popular, they sprout like mushrooms, which is why we have to look at the safety and curriculum aspects and more importantly is the interest of the students, teachers and parents who send their children there,” he said.
He added that amendments made to Section 97 of the Administration of Islamic Law (Federal Territories) Act 1993 were aimed at increasing authority to monitor Islamic religious schools.
“Once this act is amended, we can take action on tahfiz institutions which are not registered because before this, we did not have the authority to do so,” he said.
Mujahid reminded operators of these institutions throughout the country to register so that they do not miss out on any aid provided to tahfiz institutions in Budget 2019.
He said the assistance included improving the infrastructure of the tahfiz institutions in accordance with safety requirements set by JBPM.
“We help with the infrastructure, then we have laws to monitor them so that they meet the conditions for registration, and after that we give additional allocation,” he said.
On his visit today, Mujahid said the programme involved the Prime Minister’s Department and the Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (Jakim), with visits organised to Orang Asli communities in their settlements.
- Bernama
