The country’s growing Muslim population faces a lack of appropriate places to practice their Islamic faith, and this has prompted a House lawmaker to seek at least one prayer room in government buildings and privately owned establishments through legislative support.
Basilan lawmaker Mujiv Hataman, a Muslim, cites the struggle of Muslim people to find a suitable place for worship, particularly since they pray five times daily.
Hataman’s House Bill 7117, should it muster enough political support, will pave the way for Muslim one prayer room to be established in government buildings, hospitals, military camps, and privately owned establishments, including malls, factories, and hospitals.
The number of prayer rooms can still be increased as needed and as determined by the bill’s proposed implementing agency, the National Commission on Muslim Filipinos.
“As a predominantly Catholic country, many establishments and buildings — be it government-owned, private, or for the benefit of the public — have chapels or prayer rooms that cater to the Catholic faithful. In hospitals, government buildings, or even malls, there are always areas reserved for their worship,” the bill’s explanatory note read.
The lawmaker underscored that it is imperative that Muslims be allowed to exercise their Islamic faith and that prayer rooms in government institutions and private establishments catering to them be open to the public.