Travelogue of Camps: Biro Tatanegara & Muslim Overseas Camp

السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته

The past 9 days was full of new adventures and experiences as I travelled all the way to Selangor to reunite with my friends from college during two programmes; the Biro Tatanegara Camp and Muslim Overseas Camp which were held in Institut Kemahiran IM4U, Meru, Klang, and Universiti Selangor, Bestari Jaya respectively.

12 Shawwal 1437 (17/07/2016)

Boarding ETS train is not something new to me as I’ve been using it since the first year it was introduced (2010) when I used to commute from my previous school in Putrajaya to my grandparents’ house in Ipoh. In 2015, there’s a good news for people in Northern Region as the ETS route has been extended from Padang Besar, Perlis, to Gemas, Negeri Sembilan.

This time, it poses a new challenge. My departure time was at 1610 hrs and arrival at 2010 hrs (actual times). This means the Asr prayer time will start and finish while I’m still in the train. As I’m departing from the hometown, the only choice left is to perform the prayers inside the train. But how?

It says in the verdict of the Permanent Committee of Fatwas of Saudi Arabia:

“If the time for Salah is due and the plane is still flying, and a passenger fears that the time for Salah may end before landing at an airport, the scholars unanimously agree that it is obligatory upon a person to perform Salah on the plane completing Ruku` (bowing), Sujud (prostration), and facing the Qiblah according to their ability.” (Source: Fatawa al-Lajnah al-Da'imah, Group 1, 8/119-120)

So it is imperative for a person to perform it based on their ability i.e. standing, if not possible then on the seat, and facing Qiblah if possible.

Praise be to Allah, the ETS train has a decent prayer place (Musallaa) where a maximum of 2 people can perform salaah inside the train, so I prayed Asr there and met a brother from Penang so we prayed in congregation, apparently.

Other facilities inside the train include toilets and cafeteria, and anyway I arrived at Putrajaya by using ERL, then I went to Shah Alam to take a good rest before the beginning of the exhilarating camp to fulfil the requirement of the sponsoring body (Permodalan Nasional Berhad) before flying to UK, insha-Allah (God willing).

ETS Train seat

Tasik Bukit Merah, Perak from the train

13-17 Shawwal 1437 (18-22/07/2016)

My friends and I gathered at Menara PNB in Kuala Lumpur for a short briefing concerning visa procedures and pre-departure programmes before departure to Institut Kemahiran IM4U in Meru, Klang. Our faces were full of joy as we met each other after a month we left college and we shared our stories.

Putrajaya Sentral in the morning

Pintu masuk Institut Kepimpinan IM4U

As we arrived at the site, there were 126 students from our college and other colleges as well. This include students sponsored by Public Service Department (JPA Top 50), Yayasan Terengganu (Indonesia-bound), Yayasan Pahang (Jordan-bound), JPA-Mara (Cempaka International School) and a few students who returned after their first year overseas to attend the programme.

A briefing was given later in the evening to introduce the instructors of the programme, which is named as Program Transformasi Mahasiswa ke Luar Negara (Overseas Universities Students’ Transformation Programme). They were Pak Mat (Ketua Jurulatih - Chief Instructor), Pak Azis, Pak Jaafar, Pak Hamidi, Madam Ummi and Mr Zuhdi (Ketua Fasilitator - Chief Facilitator). Surprisingly, when I mentioned my maternal grandfather’s name, all of the men mentioned above know him as the latter also played an active role in Biro Tatanegara (BTN) programmes and camps. He was also a commando back in 1970’s.

Four speakers, including Mr Zuhdi himself, were invited to give talks, known as “Wacana Minda” to the participants. The speakers played a really good role in conveying the government’s message to the students as they will be the ambassadors of Malaysia overseas and then the future leaders of Malaysia once they return to the country insha-Allah. Some of the participants were elected to the committee. Our Penghulu (Leader) was Mr. Aiman Uzahir. Other posts include Timbalan Penghulu (Deputy Leader), Penghulunita (Female Leader), AJK Makanan (Food Exco), AJK Kerohanian (Religious Exco), AJK Dewan (Events Exco).

The activities did not stop there. We were divided into 12 groups, 6 groups of 10 + 6 groups of 11. Five students from KYUEM (I, Nazmil, Sarah Zulkifli, Aisyah, Eva), 2 from Cempaka (Ikhwal, Taqi), 3 from Yayasan Terengganu (Solehah, Raz, Iffah) and 1 from Yayasan Pahang (Shazwan) were in my group and our facilitator was Mr. Fuad, a Johorean living in Damansara.

We learned a lot throughout the 5 days stay there, including the Malaysian Constitution, the 1Malaysia concept, the Government Transformation Programme as well as our long and rich history. There was also a performance night on Thursday night. Towards the end of the camp, there was an examination to test our competency in the topics discussed during the programme.

We left Institut Kemahiran IM4U with memories that may last longer than pictures (except, as Hani Irfan said to me once, when you have Alzheimer’s).

17-20 Shawwal 1437 (22-26/07/2016)

The facilitators from KYUEM students from batches 14, 15 and 16 were very supportive and has shown their willingness to share their experiences abroad as the challenges out there are way more difficult and hence, it is imperative upon us to remain steadfast in practising Islam and to “bite it (i.e. the Sunnah) with the molar teeth”. 

Speakers were invited to give their talk and we were divided into groups for programme activities such as Thought of the Day, Latihan Dalam Kumpulan and Celik 1-3.From Meru, some of us departed to Universiti Selangor (UNISEL) in Bestari Jaya. The Muslim Overseas Camp (MOC) 2016 was an initiative by the college to equip Muslim students for the undergraduate life overseas.

Apart from that, participants were given chance to talk on what they get from the programme, during the Apa Saya Dapat (ASDA) – “What did I get?” sessions. As the first person to speak, I stressed on the importance of knowledge before speech and action, just as the great Imam, Muhammad bin Ismail al-Bukharee wrote as the introduction to a chapter in the compilation his Saheeh:

(باب العلم قبل القول والعمل)

(Chapter: It is essential to know a thing first before saying or acting upon it. – Translated by Muhsin Khan)

The only drawback of this particular event is that the accommodation is quite far from the seminar hall (8-10 minutes’ walk), however we benefited a lot from our seniors who shared their experiences in universities, especially on the fiqh of the traveller and interacting with non-Muslims.

The programme ended on 25/7 and we returned to our homes, seeking Allah’s help to protect us throughout our journey as He is the best to guard us.

Masjid Umar bin Abdul Aziz, UNISEL, Bestari Jaya

Till the next post, insha-Allah.

السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته

22 Shawwal 1437 (27/07/2016) | 0004 hrs