The Perception and Awareness among Construction Players Towards The Practice of Shariah Compliance

Persepsi dan Kesedaran Pemain Industri Pembinaan ke Arah Amalan Pematuhan Syariah

Abstract

The term Shariah is the general name given to Islamic law. Meanwhile, according to Islamic Markets, shariah compliance refers to an act or activity that complies with the requirements of the shariah, or Islamic law. However, going deeper into the construction industry, corruption continues to be a pervasive stain in developing countries worldwide, jeopardising project performance and with wide-ranging negative implications for all facets of society. Besides that, poor quality work also has become a serious issue in the construction industry. There have been many cases of completed buildings and structures collapsing because the construction was done poorly. In addition to that, contractors and parties in the construction industry complain either not getting paid or payments have been unduly delayed by the employer. The issues of late and non-payment are paramount to the construction industry as compared to other industries. Due to these issues, the aim focused on strategies to enhance the practice of shariah compliance among construction players. To achieve the aim, this study was performed with three objectives, which are to identify the perception and awareness of construction players to apply and practice shariah compliance, to determine all the problems and issues that have become a challenge for the enhancement practice of shariah compliance and lastly to suggest and recommend a solution towards the barrier arise. The survey approach was using questionnaire surveys and interviews with construction players as data collection techniques. In addition to that, the data was presented in the mean of average index and frequency by using SPSS software. The results from the research conducted show that the level of awareness and perception of construction players to apply and practice shariah compliance is at a medium level. One of the problems and challenges is the lack of awareness and exposure regarding shariah compliance among construction players. To overcome this issue, responsible parties such as the Government sector especially Public Work Department and CIDB should organise more awareness campaigns regarding shariah compliance from time to time. This study can support the industry players to plan a strategy which can create the awareness on how important the application of shariah compliance in construction industry. In addition to that, the Institution of Higher Learning should not only create the awareness of shariah compliance earlier through universities’ syllabus contents, but also by implementing the aspect of shariah compliance to produce a professional that comply with the shariah compliance among built environment students.

Istilah Shariah dari segi bahasa merujuk pada tunduk dan patuh pada undang-undang Islam. Konsep shariah merangkumi cara hidup, tingkah laku, keperibadian dan juga sosial. Industri pembinaan sering dikaitkan dengan aktiviti yang negatif seperti rasuah, kualiti kerja yang tidak menepati spesifikasi dan pembayaran lewat kepada kontraktor. Isu ini memberikan impak yang negatif pada industri pembinaan. Terdapat kes dimana berlakunya keruntuhan struktur bangunan disebabkan cara kerja yang tidak berkualiti. Malahan isu pembayaran lewat bukan merupakan satu isu baru dalam industri ini. Berdasarkan kepada perkara ini, matlamat utama kajian ini adalah untuk merangka strategi dalam menerapkan amalan patuh shariah dikalangan pemain industri pembinaan. Bagi mencapai hasrat tersebut, kajian ini dilaksanakan dengan tiga objektif iaitu mengenal pasti persepsi dan tahap kesedaran pemain industri pembinaan untuk mengamalkan pematuhan shariah, menentukan permasalahan yang menjadi cabaran kepada peningkatan amalan pematuhan shariah dan terakhir mencadangkan penyelesaian ke arah halangan yang timbul. Kajian in dijalankan menggunakan tinjauan soal selidik dan temu bual dengan pemain industri pembinaan dari pelbagai latar belakang sebagai teknik pengumpulan data. Di samping itu, data telah dianalisis dalam purata indeks dan kekerapan dengan menggunakan perisian SPSS. Hasil daripada kajian yang dijalankan menunjukkan tahap kesedaran dan persepsi pemain industri pembinaan untuk mengamalkan pematuhan syariah adalah pada tahap sederhana. Kurangnya pendedahan dan kesedaran amalan ini merupa cabaran utama dikalangan pemain industri. Kerjasama diantara pihak berwajib seperti Jabatan Kerja Raya dan CIDB serta institusi pengajian tinggi adalah penting dalam menerapkan amalan patuh shariah ini diperingkat awal lagi. Kajian yang dibuat ini boleh digunakan oleh pihak industri dalam merancang strategi bagi mewujudkan kesedaran akan pentingnya amalan patuh shariah didalam industri pembinaan. Pihak institusi pengajian tinggi pula boleh merangka kandungan kursus yang tidak hanya menitik beratkan aspek teknikal malahan menyuntik serba sedikit aspek amalan patuh shariah bagi melahirkan pelajar yang profesional dan patuh shariah.