Compulsory Halal registration of restaurants will bring out the worst in corruption

JAKIM already takes months to process and approve a Halal certification

As a Muslim, everything is Halal unless its haram

JAKIM is now considering compulsory halal certification of all restaurant and gerai (stalls) in Malaysia. This amounts to perhaps 300,000 premises, which must be certified across the country.

Contrary to what many believe, this move doesn’t have to go through the Dewan Rakyat. JAKIM can implement this initiative autonomously. There are already high level managers in JAKIM who have ulterior motives for this newly proposed regulation.

Traditionally, Muslin gerai and restaurants were never certified as Halal. The proprietors lived within the communities they served and community members would have confidence the food they served was halal. In urban areas, like Kuala Lumpur people would generally know which establishment was halal, and which should be avoided. Any establishment that didn’t have the peoples’ confidence would just not have customers and go broke.

Community reputation was always the best guarantee of a stall or restaurant being toyyibaan and halal compliant.

“Eat of what is on earth, lawful and good” (2:168)

Local government has been the regulating domain of restaurants and gerai. Operators need a license, which required all workers to attend food preparation courses. The key here was Toyyibaan, or cleanliness. This to many Muslims is almost as important as halal.

This creates a massive exploitive money-making enterprise

There are approximately 300,000 restaurants and gerai across Malaysia. If JAKIM charges RM 250 for a certification, this amounts to RM 75 million income from the public.

A new industry will be created for consultants to handle certifications, audits, and compliance checks could rise above RM 100 million annually. JAKIM has not specified how it could possibly handle 300,000 new halal applications, as it already takes many months for JAKIM to approve any new halal certification. This means many businesses may be left in the lurch waiting for JAKIM to process their applications.

There is already a massive backlog of halal certifications

This is not to mention the small ‘mums and pops’ gerai who set up to make ends meet with little capital. You can see many of these establishments in rural areas, where RM 500 for halal certification will be a barrier to business entry, they may not be able to overcome.

The propensity of corruption

The integrity of JAKIM in regards to halal certification internationally is in question. JAKIM had certified an abattoir in SA, Thomas Foods International as Halal through its foreign certifying body, but it was found halal production protocols were not followed. Imports of meat from that facility were banned until these infringements were corrected. This happened under JAKIM’s watch.

Asia Sentinel Halal Probe Results in Abattoir’s Ban

The same people will be in charge of JAKIM’s certification of stalls and restaurants across Malaysia.

In practicalities, lots of areas will become open for exploitation. This new consultancy industry is likely to attract those who want to take advantage of powerless ‘mums and pops’ across the country who want to comply with the new JAKIM edict. No doubt there will be those ‘consultants’ who will ask for more to expedite certificates quicker.

Many traders are talking about potential sabotage against their businesses, where some restaurants maybe fast tracked to the detriment of others.

With no explanation from JAKIM of how this scheme will be rolled out, many small Malay businesses are worried today. They fear that they will be forced out of business. When anyone who asks questions and expresses worries is dragged in front of the police, fear among traders that wasn’t there, now exists.

The potential new victims of JAKIM’s new edict

Petty businesses are now being made to jump through more bureaucratic hoops just to survive. Don’t let JAKIM become the feudal lord of the manner that allows exploitation of Malays by predators.

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