Assalamualaikum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuh.
 

In the name of Allah, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful. All praises is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds - The Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful, Sovereign of the Day of Recompose. It is You we worship and You we ask for help. Guide us to the straight path - the path of those upon whom You have bestowed favor, not of those who have evoked (Your) anger or of those who are astray. Ameen.

Eurasians are people of mixed European and Asian parentage. In Singapore, the Eurasian community is a small ethnic group that has been present since the early 19th century.

Their contributions in the field of philanthropy may be hard to trace but in other fields, they have been actively contributing their knowledge and expertise to the community.

This is in line with the Hadith of Rasulullah s.a.w. that is famously used to define Wakaf as an action that carries the value of ongoing charity.

The Prophet s.a.w. said; 
“When the son of Adam dies, his actions come to an end except for three; sadaqah jariyah (ongoing charity), knowledge which brought benefit and a pious child who makes supplication for him.”  

Here is a list of some prominent Singaporean Eurasian who has contributed significantly to the community:

1. Benjamin Sheares (1907 - 1981)

He was Singapore’s second president, from the age of 63 and until his death at the age of 73.

He was also known as Singapore's father of modern obstetrics and gynaecology, and was once the head of the department of obstetrics and gynaecology at Kandang Kerbau Hospital (now KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital).

2. John Le Cain (1912 - 1993)

He was the first local Commissioner of Police, appointed in 1963.

After joining the Straits Settlements Police Force in 1939, he held various appointments such as heading the Police Training School, Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau and Marine Police.

As Commissioner, he led the Police Force through the turbulent times of the Indonesian Confrontation, racial riots and Singapore's separation from Malaysia.

3. E.W. Barker (1920 - 2001)

One of the People's Action Party Old Guard leaders, the former Minister for Law drafted the document announcing Singapore’s separation from Malaysia in 1965.

He held the Law portfolio for 24 years, and left office in 1988.

In addition, he has held other positions, including president of the Singapore National Olympic Council, chairman of Bukit Turf Club and chairman of the Singapore Stock Exchange.

Before entering politics, he was a lawyer for 12 years.

4. Herman Hochstadt (1933 - )

Part of the pioneering group of top civil servants who had to build up many of Singapore's institutions from scratch, he was once permanent secretary at the Ministry of Law, and has experience working across a number of ministries.

In the mid-1960s, he helped to lay the foundation for the Singapore Armed Forces. Later, he took on the chairmanship of the Mass Rapid Transit Authority board, started in 1980 to build and operate Singapore's MRT network.

He also had a corporate career and was Singapore's High Commissioner to a number of African countries.

He retired from the public sector in 1989, after 29 years in the civil service, and is currently a patron of the Eurasian Association of Singapore.

5. Barry Desker (1947 - )

The former diplomat was Singapore’s Ambassador to Indonesia from 1986 to 1993.

The President’s Scholar is currently the Dean of the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies at Nanyang Technological University. His areas of expertise include terrorism and civil conflict in Asia, as well as regional economic and security issues.

He is also a member of the Presidential Council for Minority Rights, Singapore, and a member of the board of directors of the Lee Kuan Yew Exchange Fellowship.

With this, we hope that it gives you a new ray of light towards the act of doing Wakaf. If previously you have the mindset that Wakaf is contributing the wealth for the the sake of Allah s.w.t., we hope that you see that Wakaf can actually be in various form and one of it is contributing your useful and beneficial knowledge to the community.