Faishal Ibrahim replaces Masagos Zulkifli, will be Acting Minister-in-Charge of Muslim Affairs

Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim will be the Acting Minister-in-Charge of Muslim Affairs, overseeing policies and issues related to the Malay-Muslim community in Singapore.

He will be replacing Masagos Zulkifli, who has held the position since May 2018.

Faishal has also been promoted to Senior Minister of State in the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).

He has served in MHA as the Minister of State since July 2020.

Faishal was also the Minister of State for the National Development (MND) but will not retain the portfolio as a result of the reshuffle.

Prime Minister Lawrence Wong announced the news on May 21 as he unveiled the new Cabinet line-up.

Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC

Faishal, an Associate Professor at the National University of Singapore, was elected as a People's Action Party (PAP) Member of Parliament (MP) for Marine Parade GRC in 2006 before joining Nee Soon GRC in 2011.

He returned to contest in Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC in GE2025, and won in a walkover.

Masagos's record

Aid to Gaza

Masagos will be stepping down as the Minister-in-Charge of Muslim Affairs.

As the Minister-in-Charge of Muslim Affairs, Masagos helped to oversee the establishment of M3, an initiative which brings the three key Malay/Muslim institutions— Muis, Mendaki, and PA Mesra, under a single umbrella for stronger collaboration.

Since Oct. 7, 2023, Masagos has also actively contributed to overseeing the delivery of humanitarian assistance and aid to Gaza.

Singapore has sent seven tranches of humanitarian assistance to Gaza from Singapore since October 2023, totalling over S$19 million.

In September 2024, Masagos visited the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, discussing the Middle East development and the Gaza crisis.

During the trip, Masagos witnessed the handover of a US$854,000 (S$1.1 million) cheque by Singapore charity Rahmatan Lil Alamin Foundation (RLAF) to the United Nations Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) on Sep. 4.

Masagos then said: "Many have contributed generously to this humanitarian relief effort dedicated to the children, women and families in Gaza affected by the crisis."

Tudung policy

In 2021, Masagos oversaw the change in Singapore's uniform policy, which allowed female Muslim staff in the public healthcare sector, including nurses, to wear the tudung as an add-on to their uniforms.

Former Aljunied GRC Workers' Party MP Faisal Manap raised this issue several times over the years in Parliament.

When Faisal raised the topic in 2021, Masagos acknowledged the views of those who want to wear the tudung as part of a nursing uniform.

However, he explained the importance of the uniform, saying, "save for the practices that we inherited as a legacy from the British Government, our uniform policy in the public service cannot be tilted towards any particular religious belief".

"We must never allow race or religion to be used as political tools"

During the 2025 General Election campaign period, Masagos stressed the importance of maintaining harmony in Singapore.

He said that "Singapore's harmony didn't come easy" and must "never be taken for granted".

Multiracialism and mutual respect, in particular, he said, were the reasons why Singapore had peace, stability, and progress; it was not just based on ideals.

"That is why we must never allow race or religion to be used as political tools."

Acknowledging that Singaporeans would always have different views, especially on global issues, he said disagreement must never become division.

Masagos noted that in other places, minorities struggled to worship freely, even Muslims.

The trust between communities in Singapore, he said, meant that Muslims could "live and worship with confidence", building mosques in the heartlands.

Top image via Assoc Prof Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim and Masagos Zulkifli/Facebook