Muslim leaders at unease over mandatory land allocation for NM houses of worship in new developments

 

PAS has questioned rationale behind the Selangor state government “loosening” its guidelines to require developers to provide a minimum 1.5 acres of land for the construction of non-Muslim houses of worship in every new development with a population of at least 5,000.

Seeking an answer as to how the 5,000 population figure came about as an “automatic requirement”, the Islamist party’s information chief Fadhli Shaari reminded policymakers that Article 3 of the Federal Constitution places Islam as Malaysia’s official religion and “not merely a decoration in a law book”.

“Such is the basic structure agreed upon since the country’s independence,” justified the Pasir Mas MP in a Facebook post with reference to a report in The Star of the Council of Churches of Malaysia (CCM) welcoming the revised guidelines as “inclusive and equitable”.

“Therefore, the rakyat have the right to ask why it is so that the obligation to provide land for non-Muslim houses of worship is given prominence in this new policy while the needs of Islamic institutions are not given equal emphasis.”

Editor’s Note: Aside from the set aside land to come complete with access roads and basic infrastructure such as water and electricity, commercial, industrial and institutional properties will now be officially permitted for use as non-Muslim places of worship.

“We believe that the revised Selangor guidelines provide a constructive framework both the Federal government and other state governments in formulating policies and guidelines relating to non-Islamic houses of worship nationwide,” hailed the Christian Federation of Malaysia’s chairman Rev Dr Eu Hong Seng.

Firdaus Wong questions leniency

Fadhli went on to question what is the need to have such policy put in place now.

“What is the pressing need that is driving it? Has there been an impact study? And why is such a priority being given when the issue of affordable housing, road congestion, lack of schools and various basic problems of the rakyat are still waiting to be resolved,” lamented the two-term PAS lawmaker.

In a country that places Islam as the religion of the Federation, the rakyat have the right to ask for a deeper explanation before a policy like this is implemented.

Because ultimately, the real question lies in the direction of the state and trust shouldered by the government to manage land owned by the rakyat.

Although I’m not a Selangorian, I can vouch that it’s not impossible that the spirit of this Pakatan Harapan (PH)-led policy will also be brought to the Federal level which is governed by the same party regime.

Elsewhere, the Gerakan Anti Rumah Anutan Haram (GARAH) also urged the Selangor state government to provide an explanation regarding the claim that leniency will be granted to the construction or renovation of non-Muslim houses of worship in the state.

The NGO viewed seriously the statement attributed to CCM and Klang MP Ganabatirau Veraman who allegedly informed that the results of discussions with the state government had led to the decision to provide various leniencies on the matter, according to GARAH chairman Firdaus Wong Wai Hung.

“If the claim is true, it raises concerns because urban planning and compliance with the law should not be relaxed simply to meet the demands of certain quarters,” justified the Multiracial Reverted Muslims (MRM) founder in a statement by cited by The Merdeka Times.

The need for the construction of a house of worship should be determined based on the actual number of believers in an area as well as existing facilities.

If the capacity of the existing house of worship is still sufficient, then there is no justification for adding new premises, let alone through mandatory construction that does not comply with regulations. 

 - Focus Malaysia