New CEO for Muis from Jan 1

The Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (Muis) will be headed by a new chief executive and a new senior management team from next month. Mr Esa Masood, 39, currently the council's deputy chief, will take over from Mr Abdul Razak Hassan Maricar, 64, on Jan 1.

Muis is the statutory board that looks after the administration and interests of Singapore's Muslim community.

Mr Abdul Razak is retiring after 43 years in the public service, the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY) said in a statement yesterday.

He began his public service in social work before moving on to Muslim community matters, holding appointments in the Syariah Court and Community Relations Unit for the then Ministry of Community Development and Sports.

He joined Muis as secretary in 2007.

In its statement yesterday, Muis said Mr Abdul Razak has prepared his team for the leadership transition.

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Said Mr Abdul Razak: "Over the years, Muis has stabilised and strengthened its processes and programmes, and established strong relationships with its partners, stakeholders and the community.

"For this to continue, Muis needs to maintain a strong team, recruiting new talent at all levels in the organisation. I have confidence in my staff, in particular the management team which Muis has built over time."

During his time in Muis, MCCY said, Mr Abdul Razak oversaw many key Muslim initiatives, including legislative amendments to the Administration of Muslim Law Act and the Muslim Marriage and Divorce Rules in 1999.

Mr Esa, who joined Muis late last year, expressed his gratitude to Mr Abdul Razak for his guidance.

"We will continue to work together with the Muslim community, through our various platforms, to strengthen the community's religious life.

"We also hope to further strengthen ties with other faith communities as part of a multiracial and multicultural Singapore that we hold very dear to us," he said.

In a Facebook post yesterday, Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs Masagos Zulkifli congratulated Mr Esa, saying he was "sharp, but humble and open to ideas".