Kota Kinabalu: The Sabah Islamic Religious Council (Muis), through zakat contributions, allocates up to RM40 million annually for educational development in the State.
State Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Datuk Dr Mohd Ariffin Mohd Arif said this amount is utilised for student education assistance, scholarships and various educational programmes.
“Last year, Muis collected a total zakat payment of RM134 million, with one of the largest contributors being employment zakat, accounting for approximately five per cent, followed by business zakat.
“We have distributed all the zakat funds received by MUIS to the relevant asnaf groups. “One of Muis’ major contributions through zakat is in the field of education, where more than RM40 million is allocated annually for educational development.
“This includes RM20 million per year in scholarships and education assistance for students, while the remainder is allocated for zakat teachers, educational programmes, and other initiatives.
“This is also a contribution from the zakat and fitrah division, collected from donations or obligations fulfilled by zakat contributors,” he said to the media after the business zakat handover ceremony by Celcom Timur (Sabah) Sdn Bhd and THP Sabaco Sdn Bhd at Istana Seri Kinabalu.
During the event, Head of State Tun Musa Aman, witnessed Muis receiving business zakat contributions of RM1 million from the Qhazanah Sabah Berhad Chief Executive Officer, Datuk Ahmad Rizal Dahli, representing Celcom Timur, and RM999,985.00 from the TH Plantation Berhad and THP Sabaco Sdn Bhd Chairman, Datuk Dr Ahmad Kushairi Din.
Also in attendance were Assistant Minister to the Chief Minister (Religious Affairs) Datuk Ruslan Muharam, Muis Deputy President Datuk Malai Ali Malai Ahmad, MUIS Chief Executive Officer and Secretary Ramlan Awang Ali, as well as the Muis’ Zakat and Fitrah Division Head, Iwansuzairie Hari.
Arifin, who also serves as the Sabah’s Exco of Religious and Education, said as of March this year, MUIS recorded RM12,941,574.33 in zakat collections compared to RM48,545,878.90 in distributions, with a target of RM140 million in zakat collections for next year.
“As of March, we have collected more than RM12 million, and we aim to match last year’s collection. However, the distribution has increased up to four times.
“Last year alone, we collected RM134 million, but our distributions amounted to RM174 million, and the remaining zakat funds were directly channelled to the respective asnaf groups.
“For next year’s target, God willing, we hope to increase from RM134 million to possibly RM140 million,” he said.
