ISSUES AND JURISTIC OPINIONS ON THE INVESTMENT OF WAQF FUNDS: AN OVERVIEW FROM THE ENDOWMENT FUND OF KELANTAN ENDOWMENT COMMITTEE

Abstract

ABSTRACT Wakaf is linked to a variety of fields, such as religious, educational, cultural, social and economic. There are several problems and issues facing the Malaysian endowment management as a whole, and Kelantan in particular. Some of the problems and issues are lack of academically and administratively qualified personnel in the Wakaf sections/departments, lack of standard system for preserving wakaf assets, lack of standard system procedure for the transfer of wakaf items to the Endowment Committee, and so on. There are several contemporary problems and issues surrounding Wakaf management and organization, and the most prevalent of which is the issue of investing Wakaf funds. This is so because it is of great interest to the Malaysian Islamic institutions or the Malaysian Islamic council. Based on the importance of the subject, we have seen the need to examine wakaf applications to Kelantan endowment committee. This study is comprised of four sections, namely: the emergence of the Kelantan Endowment Committee and its objectives; the rule of investing endowment funds from the Islamic jurists’ perspective; contemporary decisions on the issue of investing Wakaf funds; and investment of Wakaf funds in the Kelantan endowment committee. The most important finding of the study is that the Kelantan Endowment Commission relates to several fields, as stated by the researchers. It is hoped that the study and its findings will benefit the researchers, the needy ones, as well as the authorities of Wakaf institutions and committees. Keywords: Investment, Wakaf (Endowment) funds, Endowment committee.