Update on Singapore Community Wakaf

Mr Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim asked the Minister for Social and Family Development and Minister-in-charge for Muslim Affairs whether he can provide an update on the Singapore Community Wakaf (SCW) and plans to support the establishment of the SCW including any legislative or regulatory changes and public awareness campaign.

Mr Speaker, the Singapore Community Wakaf, also known as “Wakaf Masyarakat Singapura” or WMS, was announced in June 2020 to support the long-term needs of the Muslim community. This endowment project is intended to create a sustainable income to support our religious institutions, asatizah development and community programmes.

Since then, an Advisory Panel chaired by Mr Abu Bakar Mohd Nor, a MUIS Council Member and also Deputy President of the Singapore Malay Chamber of Commerce and Industry, or SMCCI, has been set up to recommend how to galvanise community involvement and operationalise the WMS. The panel is supported by the Expert Advisory Panel and Community Advisory Panel, comprising professionals and leaders from the investment, legal, property and religious sectors.

The advisory panel has conducted a series of targeted engagements with key stakeholders to better understand the community’s sentiments and identify the critical factors for WMS to succeed. Following the engagement sessions, the panel has submitted a report on the proposed key thrusts and workstreams for the development of WMS. I am reviewing the panel’s recommendations and details will be shared in the next few months.

I would like to thank the members of the Expert and Community Advisory Panels for their effort and recommendations.

Thank you, Speaker. I thank the Minister for the clarifications and update. We look forward to the recommendations and report from the council on that. On this front, because it is a community wakaf, and we need to make sure the barriers to entry will be as low as possible to get big, massive support and to encourage this legacy of altruism amongst our community, I hope that the council will also review and consider a more comprehensive dispute resolution framework for which any dispute arising out of a community wakaf can be dealt with either via mediation or arbitration within the framework of AMLA and under the purview of the Syariah Court, if possible.

Indeed, when the legal experts and the experts on estates met, there were many issues that needed to be studied and resolved. Even laws may need to be changed to ensure that moving forward, the WMS will prevent such disputes from arising in the first place. And also, for existing wakafs, what can we do with them? This is another area that we need to study, outside what the recommendations are for the WMS.

I would also note that the last wakaf that we received from our community was in 1978. That is a long time ago! This culture of endowing properties that are given to the community by those who have passed away, is a very good culture that our forefathers started and have benefited the community today. We would like our community today who has now gained more wealth and prospered, to do the same and benefit our community and then, hopefully, the community at large.