SDP better than PKMS A team (SDA) & B Team (WP)

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PKMS or UMNO had try to have equal and fair, English (Internastional), Malay (National), Chinese and Tamil compare with PAP first official language English, since 1965.

Today SDP website had 4 languages. Compare PKMS A Team SDA and PKMS Team B WP. We respect SDP had do it better than PAP too.

 

[leetahbar]

[/something strange is happening here...B]

SDP better than PKMS A team (SDA) & B Team (WP)
fivestars Yesterday 12:31 PM
by WayangPartyEatShit 1 65

wpes posted but his posting is not seen. could he be ur clone?

 

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OUR MILESTONES

Verily never will God change the condition of a people until they change it themselves (with their own souls)

: (Al-Quran :Ar Ra'd, 13:11)

The growth and development of the Singapore Muslim community has, for a very long time, been marked by a continuous effort at self improvement. It has been a long and often painful climb, but each peak scaled has created new confidence to reach for the next goal.

With each milestone reached, education forms the central focus for the Muslim community. Here are some of those milestones over the years:

1800s -1900s: The Backwaters

1940s -1950s: Gaining Momentum

1960s: Coming to Terms

1970s: Call for Action

1980s: The Climb Begins

1990s: A Brave Proud World

2000s: Going for Quantum Leap

 

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1800s - 1900s: The Backwaters

The economic backwardness of the Singapore Malay/Muslim community can be traced to its early roots. When Sir Stamford Raffles founded modern Singapore, he encouraged the setting up of schools for the local Malays. But the then Sultan of Singapore rejected these moves as he was suspicious of the Christian influence of the British.

Later, British colonial policies encouraged the import of Chinese and Indian labour at the expense of the Malays, who became increasingly marginalised to coastal kampungs or villages where they earned a subsistence living through fishing and agriculture.

It was only towards the turn of the 20th Century that a few Muslims began to recognise the importance of education as a passport to progress. The first Malay newspaper in this region was published in Singapore to champion this cause. This was the first organised attempt at community self-help. However, because of the widespread illiteracy at that time, its impact was limited.


1940s - 1950s: Gaining Momentum

Grassroots self-help efforts began in earnest during this period. The turning point was the end of the Second World War, when Malays throughout the region began fighting for their independence. The self-help movement gained momentum during this period, and was led this time by the indigenous political parties.

In 1955, the Malay Education Council (Majlis Pelajaran Melayu) was formed as a united front against the colonial government's new Re-Orientation Plan, which sought to revamp Malay- language education and introduce English as the medium of instruction in Malay schools from the third year. The Council was led by the Malay Teachers' Union, the Singapore United Malay National Organisation (Singapore
UMNO) and the Singapore Malay Union (SMU).

This was one of the earliest displays of solidarity against a policy that undermined a fundamental and cherished aspect of Malay education -- the Malay language.


1960s: Coming to Terms

With self-rule gained in 1959, Singapore began looking at a larger union with Malaya and Borneo. In 1963, the Federation of Malaysia was born and Singapore Malays supported it enthusiastically. Merger with Malaysia made the Malays a majority in the new union, and gave them a new sense of confidence.

The euphoria did not last long, however. Because of fractious political differences, Singapore separated from the union on 9 August, 1965.

Singapore was finally independent, and the Singapore Malays found themselves once more on their own. But the trauma of separation did not deter Malay leaders from realising that their future was theirs to create, and that the Singapore Muslim community must keep up with their fellow citizens in the country's new drive towards development and industrialisation.

The Sixties was a watershed in the development of the Singapore Malays. Community leaders realised that more needed to be done in the educational field to help the community improve. That included the possibility of an umbrella body to protect its interests, safeguard its values and assert its dignity.

Community-based organisations heeded the call to improve the educational status of the community. Organisations like the Malay Youth Literary Association (4PM) organised a series of remedial classes in key subjects such as English and Mathematics, a model which is still used until today by other organisations.

This decade saw the formation of three key institutions, which remain to this day:

Lembaga Biasiswa Kenangan Maulud (LBKM)

The Prophet Muhammad Memorial Scholarship Fund Board was formed in 1965 as an attempt to help Muslims break away from the vicious cycle of poverty. By providing financial assistance to deserving Muslim students, LBKM sought to instil upon the community the importance of education as a means of social upliftment.

Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura (MUIS): The Singapore Muslim Religious Council was set up in 1968 to provide better administration of the Muslim Law (syariah) in Singapore. MUIS provided better institutionalisation of such matters as marriage, inheritance as well as improved administration of the proceeds of religious taxes (zakat fitrah) which could be channelled towards the improvement of the Muslim community.

Majlis Pusat Pertubuhan-Pertubuhan Budaya Melayu Singapura (Majlis Pusat): Set up in 1969, the Central Council of Malay Cultural Organisations took a totalistic view of Malay development. It brought together many Malay grassroot organisations to seek ways to improve the socio-economic condition of the community.

 

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1970s: Call for Action

The community passed another major milestone in May 1971, when Majlis Pusat organised a seminar, "Malay Participation in the National Development of Singapore". For the first time, community leaders openly aired and thrashed out the problems besetting the community. It also led to the realisation that these problems, if not corrected, could create a vicious cycle affecting future generations.

Throughout the decade, Majlis Pusat and its associate members implemented a series of reach- out activities throughout the Republic, including an innovative programme into the rural interiors to help the poorer Malay folk there. The remedial tuition classes, which 4PM pioneered in the 1960s, were more broadly implemented by other organisations and mosques as well.


1980s: The Climb Begins

But for all its good work, the community and its leaders were to be treated to a dose of cold harsh reality. The 1980 Census of Population provided stark and unassailable statistics of just how poorly the Malays were performing in education and socio-economic development vis-a-vis the rest of the nation.

The Census figures came as a shock to all Malays, and underlined the need for more urgent and unified action.

On 19 August, 1981, the Malay Children Steering Committee was formed. It was the work of several Malay leaders of the time, led by the then Senior Minister of State for Education and Acting Minister for Social Affairs, Dr Ahmad Mattar.

The Committee drew up an action plan to be put into immediate operation, and set about enlisting the support of more than 300 Malay/Muslim grassroot organisations not already represented in the new body.

This landmark event led to the establishment of Yayasan MENDAKI, the Council for the Education of Muslim Children on 10 October 1981. The following year, the MENDAKI Tuition Scheme was launched.

In May 1982, the MENDAKI Education Congress was launched by then Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew. The congress underlined the silver lining in all dark cloud of the previous years -- it brought unified action and involvement from almost every community leader and social activist against a serious problem facing the community. It formed a new chapter in the history of the Singapore Malay/Muslim community.

On its first anniversary, 10 October 1982, Yayasan MENDAKI was registered as a foundation, with Dr Ahmad Mattar as its first President of the Board. In May 1985, MENDAKI moved to its current premises, a former primary school building, at Siglap.

In that same year, the Singapore Malays Economic Promotion Congress (KEMAS) was organised by Majlis Pusat, the Malay Chamber of Commerce (DPMS) and the Malay Teachers Cooperative (SKSGMS). The congress undertook a totalistic review and study of the community, including its educational, economic and socio-cultural development.

This was followed in May 1989 by another congress called MENDAKI II, where a deeper and more meaningful interpretation of MENDAKI's mission and vision was discussed, including the bigger role that was expected of it. A month later, Yayasan MENDAKI was registered as a company limited by guarantee, complete with a new identity and added responsibilities. While keeping the acronym MENDAKI, it now stands for Council for the Development of Singapore Muslim Community.

Dr Ahmad Mattar was appointed as the Chairman of the Board, while Haji Ridzwan Dzafir, Director-General of the Singapore Trade Development Board, was seconded as its Chief Executive Officer. In 1990, he was succeeded by Mr Zainul Abidin Rasheed.

 

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1990s: A Brave Proud World

Happily, the unified efforts of the past decade have paid off. According to the 1990 Census, the average household income of Malays has grown from S$896 in 1980 to S$3,148 in 1990. This has shown an improvement of 140 percent in 10 years or 250 percent in 20 years.

The proportion of Malay households earning less than S$1000 a month also fell, from 67.7 percent in 1980 to 12.7 percent in 2000. This is the biggest drop among all ethnic groups.

Similarly outstanding improvements can be seen in other areas. Home ownership grew from 50 percent to 93.5 percent between 1980 and 2000. The Malays also have the highest proportion of public housing - 94 percent of Malay households live in Housing & Development Board (HDB) flats, compared to 89 percent for the Chinese and 85 percent for Indians.

Even the quality of housing has improved. In 1980, 18.5 percent of the Malay households lived in 1- and 2-room flats. This dropped to only 5.8 percent. Occupancy of the more expensive 3 and 4 room flats rose from 24.7 percent to 73.2 percent. There is also an increase in the occupancy of 5 room and executive flats to 22.3 percent.

MENDAKI epitomises all that the Muslim community went through in the past 30 years. It's about partnership for progress; about creating a brave proud world for a whole community.

As we enter the next century, MENDAKI is putting into place the wherewithal for this new world. They include:

MENDAKI Holdings Pte Ltd, formed in 1990 to spearhead the community's entry into the business and corporate world.

Amanah Saham MENDAKI (MENDAKI Growth Fund) was set up in 1991 to provide Muslims with a religiously-permissible instrument for them to invest in a trust fund.

Malay/Muslim Community Development Fund, set up in August 1991 to finance projects which upgrade the performance of the community. The Fund received a dollar-for-dollar matching grant from the Government up to a maximum of S$1 million over a five-year period.
UFUK 2009, Vision 2009, MENDAKI's bold 15-year vision to bring the community on par in its educational, economic and socio-cultural development with the rest of Singapore.
MENDAKI Smart Card: A pioneering effort in Singapore, the smart card will help Muslims in making transactions relating to their religious duties, such as paying their religious taxes. It also doubles as a credit card.
MENDAKI Global Fund : The first halal unit trust fund approved by the Central ProvidendFund (CPF) was launched on Friday, 5 September 97. The fund is promoted by MENDAKI Holdings Pte Ltd and is managed by DBS Asset Management Ltd.

This story continues, with the community continuing its sure climb towards a brighter tomorrow. Already, MENDAKI is becoming a model for other community-based self-help organisations such as SINDA and CDAC.


2000s: Going For Quantum Leap

The new millennium brings with it the challenges of the uncertain. Preparedness is the only sure way for the Malay/Muslim community to remain confident as Singapore enters the global economy.

The landscape may have changed but Yayasan MENDAKI's unfaltering focus in making the difference in critical areas of endeavour would help kink the community's progress charts higher.

True what then Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, who officiated the MENDAKI Education Congress in May 1982, said in his opening address that the organisers of MENDAKI would need stamina and perseverance.

He projected that MENDAKI would have to wait for years before distinct improvements in performance level were registered among Malay/Muslim students. This is because to improve the percentage of students reaching university would need a 12-year time lag if the intervention exercise starts at primary one level in 1982.

Thirteen years after the inception of MENDAKI, the community greeted the year 2000 with an encouraging note.

In the area of education, the Malay/Muslims have generally narrowed the gap with the other communities. With this improvement in educational attainment, the occupational profile of the community has also improved. Proportionately, more Malays are now holding administrative and managerial, and professional, technical and related jobs. With the rise in income, the quality of life as measured by possession of consumer durables and housing type has improved.

Overall, it is clear that the community has made solid progress in the last ten years. The progress is particularly striking among the younger Malays. This augurs well for the community. As the younger Malays move up the age groups, the profile and achievements of the community will improve significantly.

Just the Malay/Muslim community can look back and smile at the progress it has made over the last decade, the future looks daunting again. The benchmark is no longer the notch we made the last time. The race is no longer even within the nation. It is now a race against time. In the land of the new economy, the prepared, quick and nimble will go far.

While the focus is still quantitative and qualitative educational improvement among students, MENDAKI has put in significant effort in skills training and retraining for the Malay/Muslim workers. It provides a learning infrastructure by working with national agencies and reputable service providers.

As much as help can be provided, the greater challenge is to persuade the community to adopt a culture of lifelong learning. Only then, can the community stand stall as a significant contributor as Singapore enters the global economic wilderness.