MALAYSIAN PM PROPOSES FEDERAL ISLAMIC TREASURY

KUALA LUMPUR, June 25 (Bernama) -- Najib Razak Wednesday proposed the
setting up of a federal "baitulmal" (Islamic treasury) to coordinate matters
related to property owned by Muslims in the country.

The Malaysian prime minister called on the delegates of the two-day National
Baitulmal Convention 2009 which he opened at the Federal Territory Mosque here
to discuss the matter in depth.

He said an entity such as the baitulmal could not be set up in haste and
that the constitution and relevant laws had to be looked at with a fine
toothcomb.

"For example, the role of the proposed federal baitulmal should not go
contrary
to those of the state baitulmal. In other words, its role should be clearly,
creatively and innovatively defined in the interests of the welfare of Muslims,"
he said.

The proposal to set up the federal baitulmal was one of five made by Najib
for
the convention to fine-tune.

Najib also suggested that the baitulmal be corporatised to allow for the
appointment of professionals to run the entity for it to function more
effectively.

He also suggested that new sources of funds be explored for the baitulmal as
the existing funds available nationwide were limited and insufficient to
contribute to large-scale economic development of the Muslims.

As such, he suggested that Islamic intellectuals contribute their resources
and
knowledge to research in exploring for contemporary and new sources of funds.

The prime minister also called on baitulmal to play more active and
proactive
roles in social development activities as baitulmal as the financial, and not
banking, institutions should engage themselves in wiping out poverty completely.

"The existing baitulmal products should be rebranded to adjust to the
fast-developing environment as well as globalisation," he said.

Najib said the time had come in this challenging world for Muslims to be
bold enough to emerge from their conventional thinking pattern.

"I urge that we begin to consider every option based on Islamic principles
in re-strengthening the national economy, in particular, and the world economy,
in general.

"We have to shift from total dependence on others and instead strive to
rehabilitate and empower the national economy, among other things, with the
existing funds, that is the assets of Muslims in the baitulmal," he said.

Najib said that the government, through the national treasury and other
national economic agencies, had played a role in keeping to the spirit of the
baitulmal set up by Islamic governments of the past.

He said economic management through the country's fiscal and financial
policies adhered to the current needs of the modern economy and Islamic values
were used as guidelines in formulating the economic policies.

"In my opinion, economic institutions do not need the name Islam for them to
qualify to be grouped as Islamic economic institutions. It is more important
that their roles are in keeping with the needs of the religion to upgrade the
economic quality of society," he said.

-- BERNAMA