Previous mufti of singapore

SINGAPORE - Islamic religious teachers here have helped greatly in getting the Muslim community to understand some tough decisions that the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (Muis) has had to make, the outgoing Mufti Fatris Bakaram has said.

He said this was made possible by Muis' close engagement with the asatizah, or religious teachers, during his nine years as Singapore's highest Islamic authority and he stressed the importance of continuing with the practice.

In an interview with the media on Thursday (Jan 16), Dr Fatris cited the barring of some foreign preachers and the approval of a milk bank to save premature babies, which some have said runs counter to traditional Islamic beliefs, as Muis rulings that benefited from the religious teachers' help.

Dr Fatris will step down as mufti, Singapore's highest Islamic authority, in March.

When asked about his greatest achievement during his term, Dr Fatris highlighted how he had enjoyed getting on the ground to engage closely