‘Non-Muslim houses of worship can now apply for govt funding’
Non-Muslim houses of worship can now apply for government funding for repairs and maintenance, says Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong.
The MCA president said such houses of worship registered with the Registrar of Societies (RoS) and National Unity Ministry are eligible.
He urged all non-Muslim religious groups to bid for the allocation.
“I have instructed the MCA Ethnic Relations and Religious Affairs Bureau and every state liaison committee to coordinate and provide the necessary assistance to those interested,” he said yesterday.
The Transport Minister said the amount for each application was limited to RM50,000 or RM100,000 depending on the scope of the job for the purpose of repairs, maintenance and emergency work.
He said National Unity Minister Datuk Halimah Mohamed Sadique had personally relayed the good news to him earlier, adding that he thanked her for accepting MCA’s proposal to have a fund to assist various non-Muslim religious groups nationwide.
The application form is available on the ministry’s website and the link is https://www.perpaduan.gov.
my/admin/files/perpaduan/pdf/ Program%20Bantuan%20 Kewangan%20Rumah%20 Ibadat%20Antara%20Islam.pdf.
MCA Federal Territories liaison committee chairman Datuk Nicole Wong urged the relevant nonMuslim religious organisations to take advantage of the funding.
Meanwhile, MCA Ethnic Relations and Religious Affairs Bureau chairperson Cally Ting said they will cooperate with the ministry on the latest SOP for non-Muslim houses of worship following MCO 3.0, which will be in force till June 7.
“The bureau will convey the relevant SOP to non-Muslim bodies and their affiliates across the country via various channels to reduce the spread of Covid-19,” she said.
Ting said there were Covid-19 cases and clusters stemming from places of worship and religious ceremonies and the matter should not be taken lightly.
“The main aim of the authorities in formulating a stringent SOP is not to issue compounds or deliberately create difficulties. The SOP is intended to prevent the spread of Covid-19, so that our nation may overcome this pandemic as early as possible and for people to get back to their daily lives,” she added.
In a statement on Tuesday, the ministry said the stricter SOP involved the number of worshippers that must not exceed 50 people for houses of worship that can accommodate more than 1,000 worshippers, and 20 for premises with a capacity of less than 1,000 worshippers.
The praying time for non-Muslim houses of worship is set from 6am to 2pm and 4pm to 10pm, and management bodies are required to carry out sanitisation work for 30 minutes before and after religious activities.
Senior citizens and children are not encouraged to attend prayer activities, while physical contact, religious processions and gatherings after a worship session are prohibited.