Pop quiz… How many “religious officers” (that’s my best attempt to describe these people… heck, not that I care about them that much anyway) in a country of 27 million of which roughly 50% are Muslims, are needed to ensure that uncooked and cooked food which are sold publicly are “Halal”?
One thousand? Five thousand? I just heard on TV3 News (you might not see the particular article anytime soon, they are not exactly “real time”), that the answer is… wait for this… six. 6… as in, between 5 and 7!!! Unbloodybelievable! Essentially, this means that there is one Islamic Development Department (JAKIM) officer looking after every 2.25 million Muslim Malaysians’ right under their religious dietary law. Unbloodybelievable!
And there’s more… the highly intellectual people at JAKIM know that they have “some” manpower issues at present, and that they are in the process of increasing the number of officers to 160 nationwide. So, instead of one officer for every 2.25 million Muslims, they think that one for every 84,375 would be a more logical ratio… ah well, whatever. They seem to be overlooking another key problem in their department, which is their bloody slow pace of getting things done.
I’ve seen hundreds of expired Halal stickers in food joints all around Malaysia. When I pointed out the issue with the owners, the response are always the same… “We’ve been calling those JAKIM folks forever! And every time, they say that they’re coming… but they never came!”. If I’ve only heard it once every blue moon, the stall/shop owners might be lying… but when everyone says the same thing… I tend to believe them. Perhaps it’s also due to my own experience dealing with governmental bureaucratic bullshit… especially by these inefficient clowns… but that’s a story for another day.
But I guess this is the Malaysian way lately… the government will only act when the media screams. Not that I’m complaining! Under the old leadership, the only purpose for the media’s existance seemed to be as a pro-government propaganda platform… I believe that we’re much better off now than we ever were for the past 20 years or so.
March 27th, 2005 at 9:42 pm
Why IT folks shouldn’t eat beef
I am continuing a previous blog entry on ethics……
May 25th, 2006 at 6:46 pm
WHEN MALAYSIA IS GOING TO AIM FOR THE MARKET LEADER OF HALAL FOOD, SHE SHOULD FOCUS AND PAY MORE ATTENTION TO THE LOCAL HALAL FOOD SELLERS. SO MTHAT TO PREVENT ANY CASES STATED AS THE ABOVE REPORT. OTHERWISE THE AIMMING TO BE THE GLOBAL HALAL MARKET LEADER WILL BE JUS A DREAM AND FOOLISH THESIS MADE ON THE MEDIA.
October 1st, 2006 at 9:39 am
Assalamualaikum,
Wonder if we could work something togeher. Come accros ur writing today while searching for info on halal; I’m currently doing PhD on “implementation of Shariah Principles by Jakim in product acquisition of halal food by franchising”. Appreciate if u could direct me o people in the industry to help. TQ
October 3rd, 2006 at 1:22 am
Wa’alaikummussalam Pn Rohayati,
It seems that since my posting (which is ancient by today’s standards), the good folks at JAKIM has started their own Halal Portal.
I believe the following link would be beneficial for you to check out (if you haven’t already):
http://www.halaljakim.gov.my/support.php
Thanks for visiting
October 6th, 2006 at 10:13 am
As Salamu alaykum Pn Rohayati,
I am interested to hear that you are doing a PhD on this subject of Halal food. I would be interested to hear how you are getting on, and also maybe to offer some help. At The Halal Journal we may also be interested in publishing/interviewing you.
see http://www.halaljournal.com, and email me at info@halaljournal.com
Abdalhamid Evans
November 14th, 2006 at 2:11 am
TQ azmeen for responding to my plight. I was kind of forgetten about it till tonight when i revisit your site and read yours & mr Abdalhamid response. TQ. Yes i’ve visited both Jakim & halaljournal site; obtained some useful info to be used in the introduction section of my paper.
August 26th, 2007 at 1:42 pm
Assalamualaikum,
Saye cume nak cakap disini bahawa colgate tu haram!!!!!sebabnye ialah sebahagian drpd duit dr pembelian produk colgate akan disalurkan kpd AS dan duit tersebut akan digunakan untuk membeli senjata bagi peperangan negara Israel iaitu orang YAHUDI!!!! untuk PEPERANGAN DIANTARA ISLAM!NAUZIBULLAHsaye bkn nak mengeritik JAKIM yang menghalalkan produk colgate atau ape2 produk yang berkait dgn AS cume bg diri saye produk ini haram kerana duit pembeliannye digunakan untuk membeli senjata untuk memerangi umat IslaM!
August 27th, 2007 at 5:24 pm
sesiapa yang tahu tentg produk hazelinsnow email kt saye,,saye konfius cz ad org ckp haram
August 27th, 2007 at 5:34 pm
Wa’alaikummussalam,
Segala rujukan pengiktirafan produk Halal oleh JAKIM boleh disemak di web site ini:
http://www.halaljakim.gov.my/