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Alkaff Kampung Melayu Mosque

Alkaff Kampung Melayu Mosque a.k.a Alkaff Mosque located at 200 Bedok Reservoir Road was officially opened on 29 July 1995 by Zulkifli Mohammed, the then Political Secretary to the Minister without Portfolio, and MP for Jalan Besar GRC.

History
The mosque was originally located at Jalan Abdul Manan which was about 1km. away from its present location. It was built by the Alkaff family in 1932 to cater to the large Muslim community living in the area. It was then known as the Alkaff Mosque. It was shifted to the new location to make way for housing and other public infrastructure projects.

On November 1989, the mosque was renamed as Alkaff Kampung Melayu Mosque. This was followed by the formation of the Masjid Alkaff Kampung Melayu Building Committee formed on 30th December 1989. The ground breaking ceremony at its new location was held on 4th January 1992. The mosque was built at a cost of S$5.6 million and took two years to complete. It was the last mosque to be built under the Phase II of the Mosque Building Fund initiated by Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (MUIS). The Mosque Building Fund was introduced in the middle of 1975 with an objective to provide funds for the Mosque Building programme in Singapore.

On 30 December 1994, the new mosque was completed and declared open. The following day, it opened its doors for Friday prayer for the first time at its new location.

The site of the old mosque is now occupied by Bedok North Secondary School, which was opened on 4 December 1999.

Key Features
The new mosque is a three storey building and occupied a land area of about 3,000 sq. m. It can accommodate up to 3,000 worshippers (jemaah). Besides being a place for worship, it is also a centre for education and other administrative needs of the Muslim community in the area. Activities conducted at the mosque such as sermons and public programmes can be broadcast throughout the building. This is done via mounted controllable cameras, with the captured picture and sound transmitted through monitors that are strategically located on each floor.

The mosque is among the few in Singapore that offer religious classes for the hearing-impaired and disabled. It is also one of several mosques in Singapore that accepts payment of Zakat throughout the year. Zakat is one of the five pillars of Islam. A Muslim would donate 2.5% of his wealth to the needy and the poor in the form of alms annually.

Located on the first floor are the main administration office, main prayer hall and a multipurpose hall. The main prayer hall is equipped with plush carpeting and high-domed ceiling. The multipurpose hall is used for conducting religious programmes and, at times, to accommodate large congregations.

The second floor serves as a place for female worshippers (Muslimah) except during large congregations such as the Friday prayers, Hari Raya Puasa and Hari Raya Haji when it is used to host male worshippers (Muslimin) who have spilled over from the main prayer hall. There are also classrooms for conducting religious classes.

The third floor houses another office and a conference room.

Today, the mosque has become a familiar landmark in the area.



Author
Heirwin Mohd Nasir



References
Islamic Religious Council. (2000). Mosques Guide 2000 (p.30). Singapore: Islamic Religious Council.
Call no.: RSING 297.35095957 TUM

National Heritage Board. (2002). Singapore's 100 historic places (p.102). Singapore: Archipelago Press.
Call no.: RSING 959.57 SIN

Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura. (1989). Annual Report (p.7). Singapore: Author.
Call no.: RSING 297.65095957 MUISAR

Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura. (1994). Annual Report (p.8). Singapore: Author.
Call no.: RSING 297.65095957 MUISAR

Alkaff Mosque to be rebuilt. (1992, October 26). The Straits Times, Home, p.18.

New Masjid Alkaff mosque completed. (1995, July 30). The Straits Times, News Focus, p.3.

Sheep sacrifice to mark Hari Raya Haji. (1992, June 12). The Straits Times, News Focus, p.3.

Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura. (2003). Background of the Mosque building fund. Retrieved August 8, 2003, from www.muis.gov.sg/websites/Mbf/latarbelakang.html

Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura. (2003). Fatwa Zakat. Retrieved August 8, 2003, from 
www.muis.gov.sg/zakat/fatwa.aspx

Masjid Alkaff Kampung Melayu. (2003). About us. Retrieved August 25, 2003, from 
www.mosque.org.sg/alkaff/AboutUs.htm



Further Readings
Bedok North Secondary School. (n.d.). About us. Bedok North Secondary School. Retrieved August 8, 2003 from schools.moe.edu.sg/bnss/about.htm

Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura.(2000, Jul-Aug). The language of sign. Retrieve August 8, 2003, from
www.muis.gov.sg/webpub/warita/warita5-2000/page11.html

Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura. (2003). Payment Centres: (whole year). Retrieved August 8, 2003, from www.muis.gov.sg/zakat/PaymentInfo.aspx#Payment_Centre    



List of Images
The Alkaff Mosque in 1985. It is a centre of religious activities at the settlement. It was built in 1932 by the wealthy Arab merchant from the Alkaff family.In Geylang Serai: down memory lane (p.52).
(Call no.: RSING 779.995957 GEY)

 Alkaff Kampung Melayu. Mosques Guide 2000 (p.30).
(Call no.: RSING 297.35095957 TUM)

Ground breaking ceremony of Masjid Alkaff Kampong Melayu. In Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura Annual Report 1992 (p.6).
(Call no.: RSING 297.65095957 MUISAR)

Mr Zulkifli b. Mohammed, Political Secratary for Minister without Portfolio and also MP for GRC Jalan Besar declared open of the Alkaff Mosque Kampong Melayu on 29 July 1995.In Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura Annual Report 1995 (p.12).
(Call no.: RSING 297.65095957 MUISAR) 

The information in this article is valid as at 2003 and correct as far as we are able to ascertain from our sources. It is not intended to be an exhaustive or complete history of the subject. Please contact the Library for further reading materials on the topic.

Subject
Architecture and Landscape>>Building Types>>Religious Buildings
Ethnic Communities>>Customs and Traditions
Mosques--Singapore--Bedok
Arts>>Architecture>>Religious buildings



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