GEORGE TOWN: Non-Muslim houses of worship in Penang will require approval from the Ministry of Health (MOH) before re-opening to the public, says State Women and Family Development, Gender Inclusiveness and Non-Islamic Religious Affairs Committee chairman Chong Eng.
In a statement today, she emphasised that the federal government’s announcement on the re-opening of 174 religious sites on June 10 under strict Covid-19 standard operating procedures (SOP) did not mean each religious site could be re-opened automatically from that date.
According to Chong, non-Muslim religious organisations in Penang could submit an application to their respective religious representatives or through her office.
“The application will be sent to the Ministry of National Unity and obtain prior approval from the Ministry of Health before the re-opening,“ she said.
The application can be submitted to religious representatives of each religious group, namely the Malaysian Buddhist Association, Christian Federation of Malaysia, Malaysia Hindu Sangam, Malaysian Gurdwaras Council and the Federation of Taoist Associations Malaysia.
Chong said that the state government had also provided an online form at https://bit.ly/3c4BoiD to ease the application process
“If there are any further queries regarding the re-opening of houses of worship in Penang, kindly contact Paul Au (04-6505143/010-3759964),“ she added. - Bernama
