Zulkifli Mohamad Al-Bakri

Zulkifli Mohamad Al-Bakri (Jawi: ذوالكفل محمد البكري; born 16 January 1969) is a Malaysian Islamic scholar who served as Minister in the Prime Minister's Department in charge of Religious Affairs in the Perikatan Nasional (PN) administration under former Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin from March 2020 to August 2021,^[1] Senator from March 2020 to March 2023 and 7th Mufti of the Federal Territories from June 2014 to his political appointments in March 2020. He is currently a member of the Muslim Council of Elders based in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, led by Sheikh Dr. Ahmed el-Tayeb, and a member of The Assembly of Muslim Jurists of America. He remains actively involved in presenting papers at national and international levels.^[2] Zulkifli is also the founder of Federal Territories Islamic Religious Council's Pondok Moden Al-'Abaqirah, a religious educational institute.^[3]

Yang Berbahagia Dato' Seri Zulkifli Mohamad Al-Bakri PJN DGPN PMW
ذوالكفل محمد البكري‎
Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Religious Affairs)
In office 10 March 2020 – 16 August 2021
Monarch	Abdullah
Prime Minister	Muhyiddin Yassin
Deputy	Ahmad Marzuk Shaary
Preceded by	Mujahid Yusof Rawa
Succeeded by	Idris Ahmad
Constituency	Senator
Senator Appointed by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong
In office 10 March 2020 – 9 March 2023
Monarch	Abdullah
Prime Minister	Muhyiddin Yassin (2020–2021) Ismail Sabri Yaakob (2021–2022) Anwar Ibrahim (2022–2023)
7th Mufti of the Federal Territories of Malaysia
In office 23 June 2014 – 9 March 2020
Monarchs	Abdul Halim (2014–2016) Muhammad V (2016–2019) Abdullah (2019–2020)
Prime Minister	Najib Razak (2014–2018) Mahathir Mohamad (2018–2020) Muhyiddin Yassin (2020)
Minister	Jamil Khir Baharom (2014–2018) Mujahid Yusof Rawa (2018–2020)
Preceded by	Wan Zahidi Wan Teh
Succeeded by	Luqman Abdullah
Faction represented in Dewan Negara
2020–2023	Independent
Personal details
Born	(1969-01-16) 16 January 1969 (age 56) Kampung Gong Pauh, Kemaman, Terengganu
Citizenship	Malaysia
Alma mater	Islamic University of Madinah Al-Ulum Al-Islamiah Wa Al-Arabiah University, Damascus Universiti Sains Malaysia (PhD)
Website	Zulkifli al-Bakri
Zulkifli Mohamad Al-Bakri on Facebook

Education

Educational Background

He was born in Kampung Gong Pauh, Kemaman, Terengganu, on January 16, 1969, and attended Sekolah Kebangsaan Rengas Bekah, Kuala Terengganu (1976-1981). He continued his education at Sekolah Menengah Agama Sultan Zainal Abidin (SMASZA), Ladang, Kuala Terengganu (1982-1984) before pursuing his studies at the Thanawi level at Sekolah Menengah Agama (Atas) Sultan Zainal Abidin (SMAASZA), Batu Buruk, Kuala Terengganu (1985-1988).

Subsequently, Zulkifli pursued a Bachelor's degree in Shariah at the Islamic University of Madinah (1989-1993). He then furthered his education with a Master’s degree in Shariah at the University of Islamic and Arabic Sciences, Damascus, Syria (1994-1997), under the supervision of Sheikh Prof. Dr. Mustafa al-Khin.

He completed his Ph.D at the School of Humanities, Universiti Sains Malaysia (2002-2004), under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Radzi Othman. His research topic was "The Institution of the Mufti and Fatwa: An Analysis of the Enactments and Selected Fatwas of Negeri Sembilan".

Honours

Honours of Malaysia

• Malaysia :
  • Commander of the Order of Meritorious Service (PJN) – Datuk (2019)^[4][5]
• Federal Territory (Malaysia) :
  • Commander of the Order of the Territorial Crown (PMW) – Datuk (2015)^[4][6]
• Penang :
  • Commander of the Order of the Defender of State (DGPN) – Dato' Seri (2018)^[4][7]