Rokiah Mahmud
The theme for the National Counselling Conference and Exhibition 2022 (NICHE 2022) – ‘Divine Vaccine Overcome Uncertainty’ – serves as a reminder that in Islam, every problem has a solution.
“Alhamdulillah, Brunei Darussalam is firm and steadfast in improving the quality life in terms of mental and physical health, education, family, community and work,” said State Mufti Pehin Datu Seri Maharaja Dato Paduka Seri Setia (Dr) Ustaz Haji Awang Abdul Aziz bin Juned in a speech at the opening of NICHE 2022 yesterday.
The State Mufti said the conference serves to raise awareness on the importance of professional counselling services, especially for those in need of guidance.
He believes in the need to enhance counselling in the community, especially amid the rapid development of the Sultanate topped with Fourth Industrial Revolution, which have brought challenges to the society, thus the heightened need to focus on mental health, psychology, personality building and moral education.
“Physical intervention alone is not enough. It must be supplemented with spiritual intervention guided by Al-Quran and As-Sunnah.
“In respect to guidance and counselling, having faith in religion is vital – to embrace the power of Allah the Almighty in bringing resolutions to issues, problems and tests.”
“Therefore,” the State Mufti added, “a counsellor needs to have in-depth knowledge in his or her field to ensure the clients have trust and confidence in his or her abilities.”
The State Mufti also said today’s social issues are dynamic and unexpected, thus the counsellor needs to map out an intervention to help an individual to get back on their feet.
Pehin Datu Seri Maharaja Dato Paduka Seri Setia (Dr) Ustaz Haji Awang Abdul Aziz called on counsellors and researchers to enhance their understanding of their professionals and the Malay Islamic Monarchy philosophy to be more relevant in today’s world.
