Compassion a key trait of a good leader — Demak Laut assemblyman
KUCHING: The theme for this year’s Maulidur Rasul celebration, ‘ Menyantuni Umat Membawa Rahmat’ ( Being Compassionate, Will Bring in Blessings)’ should be seen in the context of a leader’s duty in helping his people.
In this respect, Demak Laut assemblyman Dr Hazland Abang Hipni defines compassion as ‘ to love, to help and to support the people in whatever situation’.
“When we love the community, Inshaa Allah ( God-willing) the blessings will be bestowed upon us.
“These ( blessings) can be in the form of street lights, drainage, as well as the construction of halls, new houses and the Bako Bridge.
“They can also include the leaders’ development plans like those for the Kampung Beradik- Semilang ferry service and those under RTP ( Rural Transformation Programme),” he said at the closing ceremony of ‘ Karnival Salam Rasul’ at Masjid Darul Ikhwan in Muara Tebas near here on Sunday.
Earlier, the assemblyman led a Maulidur Rasul procession comprising 300 people representing the Kejiranan Mesra ( KJM) committees of four villages – Kampung Muara Tebas, Kampung Sejingkat, Kampung Senari and Kampung Bako Hulu.
On Maulidur Rasul, Dr Hazland said it is observed by Muslims not only to commemorate the birthday of Prophet Muhammad P.B.U.H. but also to acknowledge his presence of a ‘ Messenger of Allah S.W.T.’ – ‘a gift and grace from God for Muslims in this world’, he added.
“This is something that nobody can deny – even those from the Western countries respect Prophet Muhammad.
“This is stated in a book entitled ‘ 100 Most Inf luential World Leaders of All Time’, which places Prophet Muhammad on the top of the list.” On another subject, Dr Hazland called upon the management of every mosque in Demak Laut to set up their own ‘Friends of the Mosque’ bureaus, as a way attract and encourage more Muslim youths to come to the mosque.
“Seek young leaders, or young ‘ ustaz’ ( religious teacher) who will lead their peers, and encourage them to tak e part in all programmes and activities run by the mosques,” he said.
Additionally, he also proposed the setting up of ‘Street Dakwah’ in his constituency.
According to him, the target groups are the youths and the senior citizens who rather hang out at the junctions of the village street, than to go to the mosques and be more involved in the community.
“We have to change our strategies – go to the ground using motorcycles, bicycles and cars to meet them. It could be that they are in need of attention that they do not receive at home.
“I believe we do have good young ‘ imams’ and ‘ ustaz’ – in Kampung Tabuan Melayu, we have three young ‘ ustaz’ aged between 20 and 30; we can engage them in the ‘ Street Dakwah’ programme.
“In Kampung Senari, we also have Muhadir Joll – an ‘ ustaz’ with national- level credentials. He brings great honour to the people of Demak Laut.” Meanwhile, Dr Hazland disclosed that Demak Laut would have its own ‘ tahfiz’ ( Islamic school).
“Now, this project is still in the planning stage. We are truly grateful to the man who has donated his land, where the first ‘ tahfiz’ in Demak Laut would be built in a year or two – Inshaa Allah,” he said.