Five new members were elected into the NECF Malaysia Council at NECF’s 9th biennial general meeting held in May. The number represents over a third of the 13-member council which includes the four Exco positions – Chairman, Vice-Chairman, Honorary Secretary and Honorary Treasurer. Altogether 12 people stood for election, out of which nine were elected.
Of the former council members, four (Exco positions) were re-elected without contest; another four were re-elected while one was not. Two former members – Rev Eddy Ho and Miss Goh Poh Gaik – declined re-nomination, and have thus stepped down.
Rev Datuk Dr Prince Guneratnam and Rev Dr Eu Hong Seng remain Chairman and Vice-Chairman respec-tively. Elder Kong Yeng Phooi and Samuel Ang continue to hold the Honorary Secretary and Honorary Treasurer positions respectively.
The newly-elected council members are Jubilee Initiative Malaysia Dean Rev Foo Moy Peng; The Vineyard Senior Pastor Rev Tay Wah Seng; SIB Sarawak Acting Chairman Rev Justin Wan; Bible College Malaysia President Rev Ng Kok Kee; and Grace Hee, who is currently the NECF Prayer Commission Chairperson.
The other members are incumbents FGA KL Administrator Dr Khoo Kay Hup, Georgetown Baptist Church Senior Pastor Rev Lim Soon Hock, Logos Presbyterian Church Elder Chua Keng Seng, and Latter Rain Church of Malaysia Senior Pastor Rev Dr Dexter Low.
At the start of the meeting, Rev Guneratnam underscored the need for the Malaysian Church to speak with one voice and with authority. He thanked everyone for making the special effort to come together as our strength lay in our unity.
In his report to the delegates, NECF Secretary-General Rev Wong Kim Kong said NECF had been active in raising issues affecting the churches to the federal, state and local governments. The issues included eviction, conversion and marriage.
Reporting on the NECF Foundation – set up to provide financial assistance to pastors, full-time workers and their families – he stressed that its role was only complementary as an avenue of last resort, and it would never seek to take over the responsibilities of churches and denominations to care for their own workers.
Rev Wong urged members to consider what they could contribute to the larger body of Christ through NECF, and not only to ask what they could gain from NECF. In the long run, both parties would need each other. Nevertheless, he reiterated that NECF existed to serve the churches and hence there should be no hesitation in calling upon NECF for help.
Just before the delegates voted, Rev Guneratnam shared that he was beginning to feel the stirring in his heart that it was time to step down from his position as the NECF Chairman and added the Council members needed to prepare themselves for this change.
While the votes were being counted, the floor was opened to questions from the delegates. When a delegate requested more details of the NECF Foundation, Rev Wong took the opportunity to clarify that the Foundation launch was held at the “expensive” J.W. Marriott Hotel in Kuala Lumpur because the event was fully sponsored by the owner of the hotel.
Another delegate congratulated NECF for organising that morning’s seminar with Dr Tony Campolo. He said Dr Campolo’s message on social engagement had introduced a large avenue of witness unfamiliar to many churches and asked if NECF could also offer guidance to churches with regard to some suitable social initiatives.
Rev Wong replied that NECF’s annual 40-day Merdeka Prayer & Fast & Charity Campaign was a good example of a united evangelical witness. The Malaysian Church could also adopt The Micah Challenge, a global campaign mobilising evangelicals against poverty.
The campaign, a joint project by World Evangelical Alliance and the Micah Netwok, will be launched in New York this October by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan. He emphasised that local churches must be the ultimate locus of action. NECF was only there to facilitate and coordinate joint action, and not to do the work of churches. He also urged pastors to appoint lay leaders to take charge of social initiatives if they themselves were too busy to play an active role.
Another delegate asked if NECF could help churches work with the government to promote racial integration in our nation. He said his son’s eye-opening experience in the National Service Programme had highlighted for his family the importance of this initiative. He wondered if Christians could make a united representation to the government in order to gain access to the young people in the programme.
Rev Wong informed members that NECF was the first non-governmental body to present a blueprint to the government highlighting some potential concerns of the NS Programme. He reported that NECF had also sent letters to churches to encourage Christians to volunteer as trainers but the response was poor.. Finally, a delegate expressed his desire to see the Tamil work revived. Rev Wong replied the many unresolved issues among the Tamil churches were an impediment to the work and called for patience. Besides, he personally lacked the time or energy to tackle the ongoing problems at this point. – Reported by Sandy Tan
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