PM Lawrence Wong at the Launch of Pergas' Asatizah Professionals and Volunteers Network (APVN)

Acting Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim,

Pergas President Ustaz Muhammad Tarmizi Abdul Wahid,

Pergas Council Members and staff,

Distinguished guests,

Ladies and gentlemen,

I'm very happy to join all of you today. Let me begin with a few words in our national language.

Asatizah kita memainkan peranan penting dalam dunia yang semakin kompleks. Mereka membimbing masyarakat Islam kita menghadapi cabaran masa kini dan mengamalkan agama dengan yakin dalam masyarakat majmuk Singapura, sambil terus memupuk keharmonian antara kaum.

Sejak beberapa dekad yang lalu, Pergas terus membimbing dan membangunkan barisan Asatizah yang bukan sahaja berilmu dalam agama, tetapi juga berdaya maju dan peka terhadap keperluan masyarakat kita. Rangkaian Karyawan dan Sukarelawan Asatizah atau APVN akan meneruskan usaha baik anda dan membantu Asatizah kita menyumbang kepada masyarakat Islam dan juga Singapura.

Tahniah atas pelancaran APVN! Langkah bermakna ini akan memperkukuh peranan Asatizah di Singapura. Pemerintah akan terus bekerja rapat dengan Pergas dan masyarakat Islam untuk mencapai aspirasi bersama.

Izinkan saya meneruskan ucapan dalam Bahasa Inggeris.

Our Faith

This year, Singapore marks SG60. For six decades, we have defied the odds, overcoming one challenge after another. And at the end of it all, you can say it is because of good policies, because of all the things we have done together. But I think, at the end of it all, it is ultimately because we have had faith in one another, faith in our country, and faith in our nation's future.

It is this conviction that has shaped Singapore what it is today, into something truly unique. We are not just a multi-cultural and multi-religious society. Here, every community and every individual can practise their faith freely. At the same time, we work hard to find common ground and to strengthen the values that we all share as Singaporeans.

And our Singapore Muslim community thrives and flourishes within this environment. You draw your values from the teachings of Islam. Your emphasis on respect for others, peaceful coexistence and social responsibility resonate deeply with the principles that underpin our multi-racial and multi-religious society. So we want our Muslim community in Singapore to be able to practise your faith with confidence, to live a good life as a Muslim. Not just as a Muslim anywhere in the world, but as a Muslim in Singapore - understanding our context, living in harmony with other communities, and keeping in step with an ever-changing world.

Our Asatizah

Our Asatizah play a key role in all of this. You are a key source of support for our Muslim community. You are respected leaders, entrusted to provide guidance on religious life in a diverse society.

Many have made profound contributions in these last 60 years of nation building. Like the late Shaikh Syed Isa Semait, Singapore's longest-serving Mufti. He championed religious harmony as President of the Inter-Religious Organisation, and as a member of the Presidential Councils for Religious Harmony and for Minority Rights. And also the late Ustaz Ali Haji Mohamed, who was a stalwart of Pergas and a strong proponent of racial and religious harmony. He co-founded the Religious Rehabilitation Group (RRG) and co-chaired it until his retirement. And of course, we also want to pay tribute to all our pioneers, including many of them in the Council of Elders whom I see here today. We have Ustaz Hasbi, Ustaz Pasuni, the former Mufti Ustaz Fatris, Ustazah Sukarti, Ustaz Sallim and Ustaz Abdul Manaf. All have contributed decades of service to Singapore too. So, thank you very much for all your contributions and service.

Today, the world around us is becoming more complex, as you heard from Ustaz Tarmizi just now. We see conflicts and violence, as well as protests and unrest erupting in so many places. These may happen beyond our shores, but we know they can easily deepen divisions within our own society. At the same time, we continue to experience the spread of misinformation and extremist views online. And this can easily influence Singaporeans - more and more young people, they can get radicalised, they can do things without thinking too much, with consequences that can easily divide and polarise our society. And we have societal changes and technological advancements that also raise new questions about how religious teachings should be applied in a modern society.

In such an environment, religious leadership plays a vital role. So we are heartened that our Asatizah in Singapore continue to demonstrate progressive and effective thought leadership - keeping up with contemporary developments, speaking to the realities of the day, and providing sound and practical guidance for the community.

For example, Singapore was one of the first countries to issue clear religious guidance permitting the consumption of lab-cultivated meat. This not only supports our food security, but also shows how faith and modern science can go hand in hand.

Our Asatizah also go beyond religious education - contributing in areas like counselling, social work, and even entrepreneurship and innovation. That is why MUIS developed the Postgraduate Certificate in Islam in Contemporary Societies, to equip our Asatizah with skills to serve the community in these wider domains. And together, we want to ensure that we have a progressive, modern Muslim community in Singapore. One that flourishes and thrives, a Community of Success that can always look forward to a better and brighter future. And we can achieve this with all of our strengths combined.

Pergas plays an important role in this. Pergas has been steadfast in its mission of nurturing our Asatizah. Through scholarships, grants and initiatives like the Pergas Centre for Asatizah Development and Leadership (or CRADLE), you have supported the growth of new generations of scholars and thought leaders.

And now, Pergas is taking another step forward with the launch of the Asatizah Professionals and Volunteers Network or APVN. The network will forge stronger support networks within the Asatizah fraternity, enable our Asatizah to learn from one another's strengths and experiences, and strengthen their collective ability to address the needs of the community.

I encourage all of you to participate actively and make the best use of this network. And under the leadership of President Ustaz Tarmizi and CEO Ustazah Nurdiana, I am confident that APVN will be one of the many meaningful initiatives Pergas will drive.

The Government will continue to work closely with the community to support your aspirations, including through the Singapore College of Islamic Studies or SCIS. A lot of work is being done now to get the college ready, to prepare the curriculum, and I am sure when it is in place, it will help take things forward in nurturing the next generation of Asatizah right here in Singapore.

Our Partnerships

In Singapore, we want every community to flourish. We want every community to do well; we want every community to have its place in Singapore. And the Government will put in place the frameworks to enable this and partner every community to support their aspirations.

At the same time, everyone also has a part to play - whether you are a religious teacher, a community leader, or volunteer - we have to work with one another, work together between communities, together with the Government, and together with other groups.

And such partnerships allow us to achieve meaningful and enduring progress. For example, as part of the Committee on Future Asatizah, nearly 2,000 members of the community came together to co-create a vision for the religious sector, grounded in real needs and perspectives.

Our Asatizah already do a lot today beyond religious education, together with many different organisations. Some serve as kadi or naib kadi under the Bersamamu programme, which has supported close to 31,000 couples on their marriage journeys. Others support incarcerated individuals and their families through the Family and Inmates Through-Care Assistance Haven or FITRAH programme. And many also contribute to our wider society, for example, in green and sustainability initiatives, or by providing mental health support.

With the APVN, you will have more opportunities to serve our fellow Singaporeans from all walks of life and from different faiths - in areas ranging from palliative care to engaging youth at risk.

And I hope you embrace these partnerships, because these partnerships show that we can make a positive impact by working together, and shape the future we want for Singapore. All of us have a stake in our shared future. And every action, big or small, makes a difference.

Just now, Ustaz Tarmizi shared a quote from Ibn Khaldun, talking about the rise and fall of civilisations. I have read Ibn Khaldun before. He was very concerned about how civilisations go up and then decline. And he concluded that there is one key ingredient that ensures that civilisations continue to succeed. He calls it 'Asabiyyah'. It is that spirit of consolidation and solidarity. His point is, the first generation has very strong cohesion, because the first generation has to overcome tremendous challenges. So, you have to help one another, you go through the crucible of fire. Inevitably, the bonds are very strong. By the time you get to the second generation, life is more comfortable. Everyone starts to lead their own life, retreat into their own comfort zone. There are fewer interactions with one another, the cohesion is not so strong, the trust comes down, the ability to work together is not as effective. And then you can imagine the third generation, the fourth generation, it keeps on going down, because if life gets more and more comfortable, the impetus to interact with one another is no longer there, everybody retreats into their own tribes. And there is no longer that sense of cohesion amongst different groups. The solidarity is not as strong, the trust is not as strong, and that is how, he concludes, civilisations go down.

That is why we must all work hard together, to put 'we' before 'me', to embrace that spirit of solidarity and to look out for one another, and we must do so in the context of Singapore as a multi-cultural society, as a diverse society. We must always make the effort to look beyond our own communities and strengthen that spirit of cohesion that will enable Singapore to continue thriving for a long, long time.

Conclusion

So let me close by thanking Pergas and our Asatizah fraternity for your many contributions to our country. You have uplifted our Singapore Muslim community, enabled it to practice its faith confidently, and built trust across groups in our diverse society. In doing so, you have fostered harmony and contributed greatly to Singapore's development.

May you continue to guide our Muslim community to thrive in our multi-cultural and multi-religious society, and work with all partners to strengthen our solidarity and unity. And through our collective efforts, may Singapore always be blessed with enduring peace and harmony for today, for tomorrow, and for many more generations to come.

Thank you very much.