VP: keep mosques active to prevent radicalism

Jakarta-wapresri.go.id. Vice President Jusuf Kalla said, a mosque can be said to be active when it is visited by many people who worship in it.

The Vice President stated this when officially inaugurating the Muhaiminurrais mosque located in the Presidential Security Detail (Paspampres) Headquarters on Jalan Tanah Abang 2, Jakarta, on Friday (Dec. 16).

According to the Vice President who is also the Chairman of the Indonesian Mosque Council (DMI), a mosque should be made as comfortable as possible for the visitors and have a good sound system.

“The mosque should be able to function properly, the sound system and the cleric should also be good,” he said.

The Vice President further asked all Muslims to optimally make use of mosques to pray so that they remain active and protected from any radical ideologies, though, he acknowledged, the situation in Indonesia is currently quite favorable.

Earlier, in his report Paspampres Commander Major TNI General Bambang Suswantono said, the Muhaiminurrais mosque was built by Amal Bhakti Muslim Pancasila Foundation (YAMP) in 1988 and inaugurated by late President Soeharto who was also the Chairman of YAMP.

“Since it was built, the mosque has never been renovated so that over time a number of the buildings were damaged,” said Bambang.

In addition, said Bambang, the capacity of the mosque previous could accommodate only about 700 people.

“But alhamdulillah, thanks to Allah, and thanks to the help of the donors, this mosque could be renovated within 6 months, and now can accommodate about 1,065 people,” he added.

The inauguration of the mosque was marked with the signing of an inscription by the Vice President, who was accompanied by Minister of Communications and Information Technology Rudiantara and Paspampres Commander Bambang Suswantono.

Also attending the event were Head of Secretariat of the Vice President Mohamad Oemar, TNI Chief of General Staff Vice Adm. Didier Herdiawan, Special Staff to the Vice President Sjahrul Udjud, a member of the Vice President Expert Team Yudhi Chrisnandi, Managing Director of Bank BNI Achmad Baiquni, as well as a number of invited guests and Paspampres officers.

http://www.wapresri.go.id/makmurkan-masjid-tangkal-paham-radikal/