2018 budget is expected to empower tahfiz institution: Asyraf Wajdi

LANGKAWI: Tahfiz institution in Malaysia is expected to be empowered after the tabling of the 2018 Budget by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak in Parliament later this month.
Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Dr Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki said Najib's recent announcement to include safety aspect of tahfiz institution in the budget showed the government's continuous commitment to help the institution.
"There have been continuous aid given by the government to tahfiz institution and the allocation has also been increased over the years," he told reporters after opening the Taffaquh Fiddin programme for northern zone religious teachers here today.
He said aid provided by the government were not limited to the tahfiz institutions managed by state governments, but also to tahfiz centres and schools operated by individuals and the private sector.
"We want to ensure that the prime minister's aspiration and what had been provided by the government would be put to optimal use to improve the safety aspect at all tahfiz insitutions," he said.
The prime minister had recently said that he would make an announcement on tahfiz schools nationwide in the 2018 Budget.
Najib, who is also Finance Minister, said it was hoped that with the announcement, a more stern action could be taken, especially on the issue of the safety of tahfiz students.
Meanwhile, Asyraf Wajdi said it was estimated that 400 tahfiz schools nationwide had yet to register with the Islamic religious department in their respective states.
As such, he advised the operators of the schools to register to enable the government to channel aid and assistance to ensure the safety of the students.
"The public must also play the role to send their children only to registered tahfiz school," he added. — Bernama