MUIS Awards 2025

His Excellency, Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam,

Ms Jane Ittogi

President of the Republic of Singapore, 

Mr Mohamed Saat, President of MUIS

Sohibus Samahah, Dr Nazirudin Mohd Nasir, Mufti of Singapore 

Past and Present MUIS Council members, 

MUIS Awards Recipients and family members 

Ladies and Gentlemen,

A very good afternoon to everyone.

Assalamualaikum.

1. Thank you for making the time to attend the MUIS Awards Ceremony 2025.

2. It is my honour to join you this afternoon, in the presence of His Excellency, the President.

   • This is my first time attending the MUIS Awards as Acting Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs. I used to attend many of such events when I was in MUIS Council. I must share with you I always look forward to it because we honour those who have contributed to Singapore, also I was able meet many community leaders.

   • I am deeply humbled to be part of this meaningful tradition which has been held for more than three decades.

"We-First" society

3. This year’s ceremony holds particular significance as we reflect on our nation's journey over the last six decades. At this year's National Day Rally, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong called on all of us to build a "We-First" society – one where we strengthen our bonds with one another, and put others’ needs above our own self-interest.

4. There are many ways that our Malay/Muslim community can step forward and make a difference. I outlined some of these in my recent speech in Parliament.

   • As a community, we can work together to nurture strong families and invest in our children and youth, so that they can continue to contribute to Singapore’s progress.

   • We shall also strengthen our religious institutions and uphold confidence in practising our faith, in a multicultural society.

   • And we can preserve and celebrate our rich Malay culture and heritage as part of Singapore’s unique social fabric.

5. Over the years, the MUIS Awards has honoured the contributions of 150 individuals and organisations. They have demonstrated unwavering dedication to service and made positive impact on the community.

6. Today, we welcome nine individuals to this distinguished roll of honour. They inspire all of us to give back and contribute actively for our community by: 

   • Building on the legacy of our institutions;

   • Uplifting the vulnerable segments; and

   • Working with other communities.

Building on the legacy of our institutions

7. Take Mr Abdul Hamid Abdullah, who has made significant contributions by building on the legacy of our institutions to better serve our community. He championed transformative initiatives at Casa Raudha and AMP’s Development Reintegration Programme, while improving governance frameworks and educational standards at Madrasah Wak Tanjong. Last week I just met him keeping active and healthy along the PCN at East Coast.

Uplifting the vulnerable

8. Another example is Ustazah Laila Abu Hassan, who has devoted more than two decades to supporting Muslim female inmates through FITRAH. She founded the Nisa Hope Network, which provides support for former inmates and creates new pathways for them to have second chances in life. In fact, Ustazah Laila is someone who is popular amongst female inmates. I saw how she connected with them. Even the inmates who are about to be released, they would be told there’s this one lady called Ustazah Laila, and you will have the opportunity to have a better rehabilitation journey.

Bridging communities

9. The late Haji Alla’uddin Mohamed is another exemplary figure, who went beyond serving the Muslim community, to strengthen ties across different cultures and beliefs. He transformed Masjid Khalid into a vibrant hub for learning, social support, and interfaith engagement over 30 years as its Chairman. He also initiated the President’s Challenge Charity Briyani, which continues to benefit people across different backgrounds. I remembered when we first started Charity Briyani. I was leading the MUIS sub-committee of the President’s Challenge. We thought about the idea of Charity Briyani. So we approached Hj Alla’udin. He didn’t waste anytime thinking about it. He said this is for people of all races, he had that speciality and he knew people will like it. What was something that always reminds about service and is still vivid in my mind and committee members. Not we work together or enjoyed the cooking, but we went out across Singapore to reach out of fellow Singaporeans so that they can contribute to President’s Challenge to bring goodness to fellow Singaporeans. And Haji Alla’udin was very instrumental in this. Before he passed on, I met him. He talked about our years of working together and contributing towards others. And the rest of you who have I not mentioned, you are no less commendable. You have done your own way in contributing to society.

10. I would like to congratulate our award recipients and thank them for their dedication to community service. I encourage all of us to contribute actively to the community and build on the legacy of our past leaders towards a collective vision. By working together and supporting one another, we will strengthen the bonds that hold Singapore as one united people and be able to confidently chart the next bound of our journey.

Mr President,

Allow me now to say a few words in Malay.

Para hadirin yang dihormati sekalian, 

11. Anugerah MUIS bertujuan untuk mengiktiraf individu-individu yang telah memberi sumbangan cemerlang kepada pembangunan masyarakat Islam Singapura. Mereka juga mencerminkan nilai-nilai murni – Amanah, Ikhlas dan Kesyukuran untuk memupuk semangat seperti:

    • Kepimpinan yang membina institusi masyarakat,

    • Belas kasihan yang menyokong golongan yang memerlukan, dan

    • Keharmonian yang merapatkan masyarakat majmuk kita.

12. Para penerima Anugerah MUIS telah berbakti dengan cara mereka tersendiri. Mereka memperkukuh asas masyarakat kita untuk menyumbang kepada kemajuan negara. Saya berharap kisah-kisah mereka menjadi sumber inspirasi buat semua, khususnya generasi muda, untuk terus tampil menabur bakti dengan ikhlas dan penuh dedikasi supaya kita dapat maju bersama sebagai satu rakyat.  

13. Akhir kata, saya mengucapkan tahniah kepada semua penerima Anugerah MUIS 2025. Terima kasih juga kepada President Tharman dan Puan Ittogi yang meluangkan masa untuk bersama-sama meraikan kejayaan penerima Anugerah MUIS. Terima kasih kepada semua kakitangan dan sukarelawan MUIS kerana mereka telah bekerja keras selama ini untuk menyumbang kepada masyarakat, sama-sama dengan agensi lain dan rakyat Singapura untuk membangunkan negara kita. Semoga usaha kita dapat membina masyarakat yang lebih kukuh dan menyumbang kepada kebahagiaan dan kemakmuran Singapura. 

Terima kasih.