JAKIM - everything haram unless proven halal

Zan Azlee wrote in Malaysiakini about the questionable ways by the RM1 Billion per year budgeted JAKIM (extracts):

make sure birthday cakes are halal-certified by Jakim before allowing those in your eateries 

According to the teachings of Islam, the categorisation of what is halal and haram is actually much simpler than how the authorities make it out to be. What it basically states is that everything is halal unless proven otherwise.

So what it means is that there really is no need for any halal certification for anything. You can actually just consider every single food, or whatever product, to be halal unless you want to go and prove that it isn’t. Simple as that.

What would be considered haram? Anything that would bring harm to oneself if consumed, or meat that was not slaughtered by a Muslim or other People of the Book (Jews and Christians). Other than that, everything else is fair game.

It is even said by many credible Muslim scholars, such as Ma’aalum as-Sunan, that if meat is slaughtered in a country that is predominantly Christian or Jewish, there is no need to doubt if it is halal or not. Any meat can be considered halal without having to find out what the situation is.

In Malaysia, the manipulation of religion is very worrying. Instead of being simple, as Islam actually is, the religious authorities complicate matters. Instead of assuming everything is halal unless it is stated otherwise, they believe that everything is haram unless it is proven to be halal.

are Cadbury chocolates made with pork and brandy?

it's possible in Malaysia if you check the DNAs

'Tis the way bureaucracy in its worst form functions and JAKIM is notorious as one of the worst bureaucracy.

One of my Uncles who was in the military (actually there were more than one in the military and police, but we'll deal with this One) told me of a frustrating logistic situation he experienced.

One day he went to the logistic store at his base to request for a badge, a military insignia which would informed of his qualification/speciality, eg. paratrooper wings, etc - his old one was too tatty and would invite severe criticisms from the Boss for improper dressing.

The bloke at the store was known to be hostile to officers and while not exactly or openly insubordinate in his dealings with officers, would go out of his way to make things difficult for them.

His response to my Unc's request was that he had only one of the required insignia and therefore would have to hold on to that one left in the store "in case someone ask for it".

My Unc was gobsmacked flabbergasted by his imbecilic (but probably deliberately obdurate) response. But my Unc took very deliberate pains (with a controlled moderate voice) to tell the storekeeper that he (Unc) was the very person, indeed the very "someone" that fitted the storekeeper's concern in his "in case someone ask for it".

But that bloke was not moved nor impressed. He stuck doggedly with his mantra a la "No sir, I can't issue that last badge in the store to you in case someone ask for it", wakakaka.

After 20 minutes of to-ing and fro-ing with City Hall, my Unc gave up with the bloke and went directly to the boss of Logistic who immediately remedied my Unc's frustration with a curt phone call to his stubborn underling. Kow-tim-ed in MalaysiaBoleh style.

The above scenario might not be exactly the same as the procedures devised devilishly by a highly bureaucratic JAKIM but that's how bureaucracy could work, namely, to make things 'difficult' so as to justify the RM1 Billion per year budget.

If 'halal-ness' was too simple, how could its halal-certification department earn money from entities such as MacDonald, KFC, Pizza Hut, and Auntie Annie Pretzel Hot-Kuchings.

I am actually a cat masquerading as a chook 

JAKIM's absurdity went to the extent that it threatened Malaysian food outlets selling hot dogs to rename their products or risk being refused halal certification. It 'blamed' Muslim tourists for their frequent complaints after it imposed the 'siapa raja' ruling. Who the f**ks believe JAKIM?

JAKIM was also told to f**k off after it instructed Muslims not to keep dogs, a fatwa it did NOT have the authority to issue.

You can bet JAKIM will continue on its love of making life tough for Muslims.

And the worst of its obsessions was in its offer of its so-called expertise to Japan in order to assist them during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. As Zan Azlee asked: What expertise does Jakim have when it comes to sports and the Olympics?

To warn Muslim sportspeople to beware of Cadbury chocolates, Auntie Annie Pretzel-Dogs, Birthday cakes at MacDonald, to keep clear of Japanese dogs, that Japanese eat pork, especially roast suckling pigs, etc?

Rōsutobuta, absolutely haram
Banzai