Speech by Acting Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs and Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Defence, Mr Zaqy Mohamad at the MUIS National Day Observance Ceremony 2026

President of MUIS Council, Haji Mohamed Sa'at Abdul Rahman

Chief Executive, MUIS, Mr Kadir Maideen

Sahibus Samahah Mufti, Dr Nazirudin Nasir

Council members, MUIS colleagues, mosque leaders

Ladies and gentlemen

Assalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh, and a very good morning.

Izinkan saya memulakan ucapan saya dalam bahasa kebangsaan kita. Hari ini kita meraikan ulang tahun kemerdekaan Singapura yang ke-61, dan ini kali pertama saya bersama MUIS pada Majlis Sambutan Hari Kebangsaan, dalam tanggungjawab yang baharu bagi saya.

Kalau kita renung sejenak, banyak yang patut kita syukuri. Kita masih boleh menunaikan solat dengan tenang, memakmurkan masjid, menghantar anak-anak mendalami ilmu agama, dan hidup berjiran dengan warga pelbagai kaum dan agama tanpa rasa was-was. Di banyak tempat di dunia hari ini, semua ini bukan lagi perkara yang boleh diambil mudah.

Keadaan ini tidak datang dengan sendirinya. Ia terbina daripada usaha dan pengorbanan mereka yang terdahulu, daripada kepercayaan yang dijaga sedikit demi sedikit antara masyarakat, dan daripada kerjasama erat antara pemerintah, MUIS dan institusi-institusi masyarakat kita.

Saya juga ingin merakamkan penghargaan kepada Profesor Madya Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim atas kepimpinan dan sumbangan beliau selama ini. Bersama MUIS dan rakan-rakan masyarakat, beliau menggerakkan usaha seperti Dadah Itu Haram, program FITRAH dan Bersamamu, di samping pembangunan masjid-masjid kita. Usaha-usaha itu masih memberi manfaat kepada masyarakat sehingga hari ini, dan asas yang beliau tinggalkan itu yang kita teruskan sekarang.

Sesungguhnya, apa yang kita warisi hari ini adalah amanah. Amanah itu bukan untuk disimpan sahaja, tetapi untuk dipikul, diperkukuh, dan diserahkan kepada generasi selepas kita dalam keadaan yang lebih baik daripada ketika kita menerimanya.

Let me continue in English.

I have only been in this role for about a week. Most of that week I spent meeting many of you, mostly CE, MUIS council, mosque and more. I am thankful it worked out that way, because that is one of the lessons I learnt from Prof Faishal in terms of what engagement is valued by the community – being there where people are, being there with their mindshare and more importantly taking a listen ear and engaging. That is the strength, not just for the Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs but something our institutions learn from as well. Be part of best practice in terms of how we listen to our jemaah, how we listen to our rakyat. This is something I hope that we can continue to grow and learn from.

What I have learnt from the past week is what I have seen as a community, and as an organisation – one that you and our predecessors have built for many years.

Our asatizah guide the community through questions that grow harder every year as the topics become more challenging, and they do it with care and with sound judgement. Our madrasahs and our religious education have kept faith and knowledge alive in our young too.

With the Singapore College of Islamic Studies, we will go further, training scholars who understand our religion deeply and at the same time, understand Singapore and the world deeply too.

Every year, our Haj operations bring thousands of pilgrims to the holy land and alhamdulillah, return them safely to their families. And through zakat, wakaf, halal and the work of our mosques, help reaches families quietly, day after day, in ways most Singaporeans will never think about. But of everything I have seen this past week, what matters most is not a programme, or a building or offices.

It is trust.

Trust is what makes a mosque more than a place with a dome. When a family walks in carrying a problem they have not told anyone else, they come because they trust they will be received well, and that what they are told is sound. When a young person asks a hard question about faith and the world today, they ask because they trust the one answering.

That trust took decades to build, and it is what will carry us through. Through a world that feels less certain than before. Through technology moving faster than any of us can follow. And through living together, as we do, in a Singapore of many faiths.

Sahibus Samahah Mufti, our asatizah and religious leaders, our Council members, and everyone here from MUIS and from our mosques. Much of your work is unseen, and I know it is not done to be seen. But it is your work that this community leans on. On behalf of the community, thank you for your work over the years.

I understand our lunch later is a potluck, and that many of you brought something from home. Some dishes simple, some more elaborate. Nobody asked who brought what. Everyone just brought. Everyone also just “makan”.

That has always been our way when we gather. We bring what we have, and somehow, there is always enough.

MUIS is also renewing its own leadership as we begin this chapter.

Khairul Anwar has stepped down as Deputy Chief Executive after many years of service here. Khairul, on behalf of the community, thank you. Much of what you built will continue to help the community for years to come.

Faizah Ahmad Barazy joined us full-time as Deputy Chief Executive on 1 August, just three days ago. And Rafidah Suparman will join us as Assistant Chief Executive in October. To both of you, welcome. Many of us are still learning this work, myself very much included, and in sya Allah we will learn it together.

There is still much ahead of us. We want our mosques to remain vibrant, and close to the people they serve. We want our families to feel supported when life turns difficult. We want our young to know, early, that someone believes in them. And the harmony we enjoy in this country needs tending, patiently and quietly, because it is not something any of us can take for granted.

We must also keep learning. AI will change how we work, and I am glad how MUIS has already been already using it in practical ways, such as IftaSG, which supports fatwa research in our own Singapore context. But let me say this clearly. Technology can help us serve better and faster. It can never replace the person who sits with a family in their most difficult moment.

Let me share one thing before I close.

On 26 July, our full-time madrasah students took part in the National Day Istana Open House. Our children, in their uniforms, at the President's lawn celebrating Singapore's birthday alongside everyone else.

Our children were not there as guests. They were there as Singaporeans celebrating NDP as everyone else.

This year's theme is Majulah Singapura, Go Beyond. For our community, I hope going beyond means this.

That we continue to care for our own, and at the same time give what we have to Singapore. That we are not only part of the national story, but among those help write the next chapter.

Thank you for all that you do, so much of your work is unseen. I can assure you that much of it is treasured for now and generations to come. Selamat Hari Kebangsaan to you and your families.

Izinkan saya akhiri dengan serangkap pantun.

Walau musim kian berubah,
Mentari tetap menyinar terang;
Bersatu kita menjunjung amanah,
Demi masa depan yang lebih gemilang

Terus maju bersama. Majulah Singapura.

Wabillahi taufiq walhidayah, wassalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh.