AMPlified Issue 27 — July 2015

A Quarterly Newsletter by the Association of Muslim Professionals

27

J U LY 2 0 1 5

MICA (P) 034/11/2014 ISSN 1793-8694

© ASSO CIAT IO N O F M U SLIM PR O F ESSIO N A L S . P E R M I S S I O N I S R E Q U I R E D FO R R E P R O D U C TI O N

CONTENT

JULY 2015

W H AT ’ S IN STORE

EDITORIAL LINE-UP

A total of $55,000 was distributed at the ceremony, while another $140,000 has been allocated to various socio-educational assistance for students from low-income families during the year. Since the bursary was enhanced in 2013 to include those from private education institutions, almost 40% of its recipients comprise undergraduates from these institutions.

1 The AMP Education

Bursary is under AMP’s Ready for School Fund or RFS, which has rendered assistance to

disadvantaged students across all educational levels since 2002. AMP hopes that by

Opening Pathways To Lifelong Learning

in their academic endeavours, continue to upgrade their skills in their areas of interest and in turn, give back to those who are in need.

helping these students access opportunities in institutes of higher learning, they will excel

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Education For All

5

Making an Impact on Families

6

Giving Thanks to Moms

7

Business and Entrepreneurship for Youths

8

Help for Helping Professionals

9

Getting a Kick Out of Football

Supervising Editor Mohd Anuar Yusop Editor Winda Guntor

10

Gearing Up for Ramadan

11

Capturing Memories

13

Nurturing the Community’s Success in Sports

15

Flying High

17

Marketplace & Highlights

Subeditor Ruzaidah Md Rasid Contributors Abdul Shariff Aboo Kassim Amalina Sujak Atikah Syarah Ismail Fadlun Kemat Fauziah Rahman Herwan Nulhaqiem Mas’at Mariam Mustaffa Noraqilah Mohd Kambali Shiffa Khumaira Abdul Khaliq Tiara Surya Dusqie Yassemin Md Said

For advertising enquiries, please email winda@amp.org.sg.

We welcome feedback, comments and suggestions on the articles that appear in AMPlified. Please address your correspondence to winda@amp.org.sg.

Photography Fadlun Kemat Hameet Khanee JH Shiffa Khumaira Abdul Khaliq Siti Nurshafiqah Ashur A.Kadir Tiara Surya Dusqie

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EDITOR’S NOTE

Dear Readers Ramadan Mubarak to you and your family!

Against the backdrop of our nation’s 50th birthday, Singapore recently played host to the 28th South East Asian (SEA) Games after more than two decades. The Games concluded with a national record of 84 gold, 73 silver and 102 bronze medals. It is interesting to note that among these winners are our Malay/Muslim competitors like rowers Saiyidah Aisyah Mohamed Rafa’ee and her brother Syahir Ezekiel Rafa’ee, as well as shooter Norizan Mustafa, who represented the nation in unconventional sports categories within the community.

In his opinion piece on Pages 13 & 14, Abdul Shariff Aboo Kassim from our research subsidiary, Centre for Research on Islamic and Malay Affairs (RIMA), shares his analysis on how our Malay sportspeople have fared in the recent Games and their achievements vis-à-vis those of the past Games; as well as our presence in sports categories which are deemed ‘non-traditional’ to the Malay community.

At a separate sporting event, two teams from our Youth department fared well in representing AMP for Berita Harian’s National Futsal Championship 2015, where the Under 35 team clinched third place (Page 9). While we celebrate these momentous sporting achievements, this issue of AMPlified also applauds the accomplishments of our beneficiaries in their efforts to build better lives for themselves. A total of 70 diploma and degree students were awarded cash bursaries at this year’s AMP Education Bursary Award Disbursement Ceremony (Pages 1 & 2), the mothers under the Club INSPIRASI programme were treated to a self-care session (Page 6), while some families of the Adopt a Family and Youth Scheme (AFYS) were treated to a makeover and new outfits for a special photo session courtesy of our corporate sponsor, Sufyaa (Pages 11 & 12).

Let us add value to every moment in our life as every moment is an opportunity for small achievements. And small achievements will pave the way for bigger ones on both individual and community levels, insya Allah.

Wishing you a joyous Aidilfitri celebration ahead and may the blessings of Ramadan and Syawal shine upon you and your loved ones always. I would also like to wish all readers a Happy National Day!

MOHD ANUAR YUSOP Executive Director

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EVENT

JULY 2015

OPENING PATHWAYS TO LIFELONG LEARNING BY

NORAQILAH MOHD KAMBALI

o foster a culture of lifelong learning on top of assisting less privileged tertiary students in their pursuit of higher education, AMP presented its Education Bursary Award to a total of 70 students during the AMP Education Bursary Disbursement Ceremony on 30 May. Gracing the event as Guest of Honour was Associate Professor Muhd Faishal Ibrahim, Parliamentary Secretary for Health and Transport.

In his opening address to the recipients and their accompanying guests, Prof Faishal reminded the students that learning is a lifelong journey and skills mastery is key to building a better future.

He also encouraged them to continue moving forward regardless of where they are in their educational journey and to remember those who have contributed to their success.

After the address, Prof Faishal was then accompanied

by Mr Azmoon Ahmad, Chairman of AMP Group, to present the cash bursaries to the diploma students, who received $500 each, and undergraduates, who received $1,000 each. All of them were then ushered to a reception where the recipients were given the opportunity to mingle and share their experiences with one another.

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A total of $55,000 was distributed at the ceremony, while another $140,000 has been allocated to various socio-educational assistance for students from low-income families during the year. Since the bursary was enhanced in 2013 to include those from private education institutions, almost 40% of its recipients comprise undergraduates from these institutions.

ABOVE

Apart from students from local polytechnics, the AMP Education Bursary Award is also extended to full-time diploma students from LASALLE College of the Arts and Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, some of whom are pictured here.

RIGHT

Two of the bursary recipients and their parents with Guest of Honour, Prof Faishal

The AMP Education Bursary is under AMP’s Ready for School Fund or RFS, which has rendered assistance to disadvantaged students across all educational levels since 2002. AMP hopes that by helping these students access opportunities in institutes of higher learning, they will excel

in their academic endeavours, continue to upgrade their skills in their areas of interest and in turn, give back to those who are in need.

Š ASSO CIAT IO N O F M U SLIM PR O F ESSIO N A L S . P E R M I S S I O N I S R E Q U I R E D FO R R E P R O D U C TI O N

JULY 2015

EVENT

MAKING AN IMPACT ON FAMILIES BY

AMALINA SUJAK

mid growing concerns over the multi-faceted issues faced by low-income families and the challenges they face in managing them simultaneously, AMP’s Adopt a Family and Youth Scheme (AFYS) organised a Family Strengthening Workshop for its adult beneficiaries on 25 April. More than 100 participants attended the workshop to learn and engage in meaningful activities with one another.

The workshop covered all of the Family Economic Sustainability Programme’s (FESP) six components of family development, which was introduced last year as part of AFYS’ efforts to measure the impact of their programmes and services.

The workshop, which was done in collaboration with Vector Scorecard Asia-Pacific Pte Ltd (VSC), focused on handling family and social issues, managing housing liabilities and assets, and improving employability.

At the same time, 80 children from AFYS spent the day revising at the Super Study Camp in preparation for their upcoming mid-year examinations. The primary school students were given practice papers and assisted by teacher volunteers from Tanjong Katong Primary School who helped them identify common questions. Secondary school students, on the other hand, were encouraged to raise questions to a team of Mathematics and Science teacher volunteers to aid them in further understanding the topics they were struggling with.

The event wrapped up with a lucky draw segment where 20 families received new home appliances such as rice cooker, iron, standing fan and multi-cooker. The children were not excluded from the excitement, as their own lucky draw segment saw the winners going home with items such as stationery set, wallet, 8GB thumbdrive and two different book series.

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LEFT

In celebration of Mothers’ Day, some of the AFYS children were involved in craft activities and later presented their handiwork to their mothers.

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GIVING

THANKS TO MOMS BY

n 17 May, Club INSPIRASI organised an event at OnePeople.sg to celebrate motherhood and show appreciation for the spousal sacrifices and contributions of the married couples under the programme. Attended by 36 parents and 37 children, the event offered fun-filled activities aimed at highlighting the importance of teamwork and shared responsibilities in a family.

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FADLUN KEMAT

In a collaboration with training provider ProWise Consultancy, INSPIRASI@AMP treated the mothers to an interactive talk, followed by a group yoga session to combat their everyday stress. The session also touched on the importance of holistic self-care which includes psychological, emotional, physical and financial care to fortify positive values and qualities that enhance their self-worth, self-esteem and resilience.

Concurrently, the fathers and their children worked together to create a meaningful gift for the mothers as a gesture of appreciation for their sacrifices for the family. They also made flower arrangements in a creatively-painted mug and a special card to express their love.

The event ended on a high note as the fathers collectively performed hilarious skits followed by the children performing a special cheer for their mothers, before their personalised gifts were presented, making the mothers cry tears of happiness!

RIGHT

The Club INSPIRASI mothers were treated to a yoga session while their husbands and children prepared a special do-it-yourself treat for them.

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JULY 2015

EVENT

GETTING A KICK OUT OF FOOTBALL BY

HERWAN NULHAQIEM MAS’AT

n 30 and 31 May, two teams from AMP’s Youth department represented the organisation to compete in the Under 35 and Women categories for Berita Harian’s National Futsal Championship 2015.

The six-category Championship, participated by 265 teams, was held at the Home United Youth Football Association in conjunction with the SG50 celebrations and the South East Asian (SEA) Games.

The two teams, mainly made up of AMP’s youth volunteers and mentors, performed well in both categories – where the Under 35 team clinched third place, while the Women’s team qualified for the second round of the Championship after coming in second at the group stage. Two players from the Under 35 team were even identified by the coaches of the Football Association of Singapore (FAS) present at the game and invited to be part of the national training squad, along with the chance to represent Singapore come October.

AMP is pleased to have participated in the Championship, which promotes healthy lifestyle, the sporting culture and integration among the different communities of Singapore.

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LEFT

The winning AMP’s Under 35 team with their third-place medals.

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n 14 June, INSPIRASI@AMP organised a pre-Ramadan workshop in conjunction with the coming holy fasting month.

The workshop titled, Ramadan Recharge, was attended by some 26 married individuals who had graduated from the Young Couples Programme run by INSPIRASI@AMP and INSPIRASI PPIS. Apart from appreciating the significance of Ramadan, the workshop aimed to enhance the couples’ marriage and family life by

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GEARING UP FOR RAMADAN BY

FADLUN KEMAT

inspiring positive changes and personal transformation.

INSPIRASI@AMP collaborated with Safinah Institute, a provider of Islamic education for adults, to lead two concurrent sessions for the parents and children. The workshop for parents, facilitated by Ustaz Fizar Zainal, touched on the fundamental

rulings of Ramadan through an interactive and engaging session. He spoke on how the couples can seize every opportunity to improve their spousal and parenting roles while improving their spiritual relationship with the Almighty during the month. This includes performing Ramadan rituals together as a family to

strengthen their familial bond.

Ustaz Fizar also shared some marriage tips from the stories of the Prophet (pbuh) and verses from the Quran.

Meanwhile, the workshop for the children highlighted positive values such as kindness, love and respect as they learnt about the meaning of Ramadan. At the end of the session, many participants found the session useful as they had gained a lot of tips on how to strengthen their family ties during Ramadan.

LEFT

Under the Club INSPIRASI’s engagement series, the couples under the INSPIRASI Hubs’ Young Couples Programme were imparted with knowledge and skills to enhance their roles and responsibilities in their marriage and family life.

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BY

ABDUL SHARIFF ABOO KASSIM

THOUGHT

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t the recently-concluded 28th South East Asian (SEA) Games, Team Singapore hauled a record total of 259 medals, of which 84 were gold.

It was the Team’s best ever performance in the history of the SEA Games, and a fitting tribute to the nation’s 50th year of independence.

The 2015 Games also witnessed the presence of a number of Malay/Muslim athletes who did Singapore proud with their accomplishments. Nurul Baizura Abdul Razak, the lone Malay/Muslim in the women’s netball

team, won the gold. Her gold-medal feat was matched by the men’s and women’s floorball teams. Fariza Mohd Zabir, Suhailah Mohd Yusof and Sharifah Syed Abdullah were in the women’s team while Siraaj Ramadhan, Syazni Ramlee and Abdul Hafiz Zubir were starters in the men’s. Mohd Zain Amat snatched the gold medal in the men’s trap shooting, while securing an individual bronze. Men’s pencak silat also bagged gold through Nur Alfian Muhd Juma’en but a gallant Muhd Amirudin Jamal, representing the Singapore men’s 4x100-metre relay in track and field, missed out on the gold medal despite the quartet producing their best ever performance. Other silver medallists include

© ASSO CIAT IO N O F M U SLIM PR O F ESSIO N A L S . P E R M I S S I O N I S R E Q U I R E D FO R R E P R O D U C TI O N

canoeist Muhd Syaheenul Aiman Nasiman, boxer Mohd Hanurdeen Hamid and shooter Norizan Mustafa. The men’s hockey team with 10 Malay/ Muslims, the men’s sepak takraw team and women’s pencak silat also bagged silvers.

Looking at the list of Malay/Muslim medal winners, one would notice that they come from across a broad spectrum of disciplines, which includes netball, floorball, shooting, canoeing and even taekwondo and gymnastics, which saw 17-year old Fadzlyn Mohd Zahruddin and 19-year old Aizat Muhd Jufrie winning a bronze medal each. It challenges established notions of genetic predisposition to particular types of discipline, which is reinforced by observations of an ethnic group dominating a particular sport. This notion has led some to believe that Malay/Muslims are thus capable of excelling only in sports such as football, and conspicuously absent in fields like swimming, basketball, volleyball, fencing, diving and water polo.

However, a more optimistic assessment of the ethnic spread across sporting disciplines is that it is an emerging trend of existing ethnic enclaves in sports gradually giving way to a more diverse spread of racial groups across sporting disciplines as multiculturalism takes root, particularly among younger Singaporeans.

If true, then this phenomenon should be nurtured, with schools, for instance, helping aspiring sportspeople to overcome cultural and linguistic barriers associated with a particular sport and sports bodies helping to create conducive environments for athletes

is hardly Malay/Muslim participation and how they overcame the challenges.

SEA Games 2015 also revealed the lack of achievement in track and field events. It was instrumental in enabling Thailand to displace Singapore at the helm of the medal tally.

Singapore was once the powerhouse of Southeast Asian athletics, featuring, among other distinguished sports personalities, Malay/Muslims like Osman Merican and Noor Azhar Hamid. Azhar won gold medals in the 1969, 1973 and 1975 Games. His personal best of 2.12 metres is 12 centimetres higher than the 2015 SEA Games’ Singaporean high jumper, Muhd Nasiruddin Jumari's, which is a possible indication of the extent by which standards may have fallen. It is thus timely for the community to see how the talent and experiences of its sporting greats can be harnessed to contribute to efforts to reclaim Singapore’s past glory in track and field events.

The record-breaking medal haul in the 2015 SEA Games is indeed inspiring. It provides an impetus for Singapore to aim for greater sporting glory. To achieve this, one of the ABDUL SHARIFF ABOO KASSIM

is a Researcher/ Projects Coordinator of AMP’s research subsidiary, Centre for Research on Islamic and Malay Affairs (RIMA).

The opinions expressed in the article are his own.

to thrive regardless of their ethnicity. Taking swimming as an example, anecdotally, as a recreational swimmer, I have observed many Malay/Muslim parents sending their children to swimming pools for lessons. This interest in swimming should translate into some of them advancing to competitive swimming and featuring in national competitions. If this does not materialise, it would be interesting to study where the breakdown in progress occurs and whether there are factors, such as sociocultural or socio-religious ones contributing to it.

It would be useful to learn from netballer Baizura and canoeist Syaheenul about what led to their choice of sports in which there

measures that could be undertaken is to ensure that the availability of aspiring sportspeople for the various sporting disciplines are not constrained by impediments that have little to do with talent or ability. It is hoped that Malay/Muslims will make significant inroads into sports where there have been little or no participation from them. It would also be good to see more of the community’s sporting greats coming forward to take a more active role in developing local athletes.

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JULY 2015

hen Mohammad Naqib Hijrie Sanusi was younger, his late father, who was working at the airport at the time, often brought him to the viewing gallery of the airport to watch planes take off and land.

This was when his interest in aviation began, with the ambition of becoming a commercial pilot one day.

Unfortunately, Naqib’s beloved father passed away five years ago due to prostate cancer and he felt weighed down by the new set of challenges that life presented to him. Nevertheless, he used

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SPOTLIGHT

his father’s passing as a source of motivation to see him through his polytechnic education, where he attained a Diploma in Aerospace Electronics from Temasek Polytechnic. Now 23, Naqib is currently pursuing University of Glasgow’s Bachelor of Engineering with Honours in Aerospace Systems through the Singapore Institute of

Technology. He is also a recipient of the AMP Education Bursary.

AMPlified caught up with Naqib recently to find out more about the challenges he faced and what he hopes to achieve in the future.

FLYING HIGH BY

NORAQILAH MOHD KAMBALI

AMPlified: What are some of the challenges you and your family faced after your father’s passing and how did you overcome them?

After my father passed away in 2010 because of prostate cancer, my family faced a number of challenges. Apart from dealing with our loss of a beloved family member, we also lost our breadwinner.

It was definitely a hard time for me especially, because I now had to be the “man” of the family. However, over time, I used his passing as a source of motivation for me to work harder. I became more independent and mature in my thoughts and decision making.

I know that my late father’s spirit is always with me and it gives me strength whenever I face difficult times.

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AMPlified: What are the future hopes and aspirations you have for yourself, family and community?

AMPlified: How will the AMP Education Bursary help?

The bursary will assist me in financing my stay in Glasgow for my Overseas Immersion Programme (OIP) with University of Glasgow. The OIP will give me an invaluable opportunity to experience what a typical day in school is like at the university there.

I hope to achieve my ultimate goal, which is to become a commercial pilot. Having that end result in mind and keeping the spirit of my father alive within me are just the motivation I need to get me through, insya Allah. My family and friends have also been a constant source of motivation for me. I hope that my family will continue to remain close knitted and always support each other when one is down.

As for the community, I hope to inspire others into never giving up, even though some things may change their lives, or severely affect it, like how it was for me. Instead, turn that challenge or obstacle into a positive motivation to help spur you on and achieve your goals.

RIGHT

Mohammad Naqib Hijrie Sanusi (middle) pictured here at the AMP Education Bursary Disbursement Ceremony, is an aspiring pilot who turned his father’s passing into a source of motivation for him to work harder at his studies.

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MARKETPLACE

MAK MILAH STATION

QUEEN’S BAKE

Mdm Noor Leza Ishak, with six years’ experience in the food business, runs Mak Milah Station, where she offers delicious Malay cuisine. Among the wide variety of food she has on offer are rice sets, pulut tumpeng (glutinous rice set), authentic Malay dishes and traditional kuih like suji, wajik, goreng pisang, samosa and popiah, as well as desserts such as bubur kacang and pulut hitam for family or corporate functions. Her specialities are also available at Al-Amaan Eating House (opposite Kassim Mosque).

For more information or to place an order, please contact Mdm Noor Leza at 9850 5203.

Started in 2013, Queen’s Bake offers a variety of desserts such as its best-seller juicy fruit tarts and Nutella cheese tarts, among many others. Owned by Mdm Siti Norafidah Mohd Mislan, who has a Certificate in 3D Designer Cakes and Human Figurines, Queen’s Bake also specialises in red velvet, chocolate fudge vanilla, and other flavoured cakes at affordable prices.

For more information or to place an order, please contact Mdm Siti Norafidah at 9235 5905 or email norafidahsiti@gmail.com.

HIGHLIGHT YOUNG AMP & A*STAR-I2R SME OUTREACH July 2015 AMP’s youth wing, Young AMP, in collaboration with the Agency for Science, Technology and Research’s (A*STAR) Institute for Infocomm Research (I2R), will be organising the second session of their SME Outreach on 24 July, featuring three other ready-to-go technologies such as Intelli-Signage, Sensors & Applications and Limelight. Together with the Singapore Malay Chambers of Commerce & Industry (SMCCI), it is hoped that the session could expose small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to using these technologies to improve their business productivity.

Interested individuals who wish to register or find out more about the event may visit bit.ly/1Jk07iR or Young AMP’s Facebook page at www.facebook.com/YoungAMPSingapore.

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