KUALA LUMPUR – The Women, Family and Community Development Ministry is in the process of drafting a proposal paper for the establishment of a committee to study the feasibility of mandating pre-marriage courses for non-Muslim couples.
Its deputy minister, Aiman Athirah Sabu, said that the committee will propose suitable programmes and it will be presented to the cabinet in the near future.
She said this when winding up the debate session on the motion of thanks for the royal address, in the Dewan Negara today. She was replying to Senator Aknan Ehtook, who proposed that non-Muslim couples undergo a premarital course before tying the knot.
Meanwhile, commenting on the lack of Social Welfare Department (SWD) officers and staff at temporary relief centres during the floods, Aiman said that the department had taken steps to address the issue through community empowerment.
“SWD has taken the initiative to empower the community by appointing community leaders, heads of local agencies, school principals, head teachers and other community volunteers, as supervisors and committee members and staff at relief centres.
“Through community empowerment and resilience during the disaster, it will enable community leaders to run a relief centre with minimal monitoring from SWD staff,” she said.
The Dewan Negara sitting continues tomorrow. – Bernama, March 27, 2023
