KOTA TINGGI, April 16 — Expressing regret over a post by a Facebook account owner allegedly insulting the His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia, recently, the Johor government has urged the Johor State Islamic Religious Department (JAINJ) to prepare a special Friday prayer sermon regarding the responsibility of praying for fellow Muslims.
Johor Islamic Religious Affairs Committee chairman Mohd Fared Mohd Khalid said the post by the individual, who claimed not to have raised his hands when the prayer was read for the King after the Friday prayer sermon, was feared to create a culture that would be followed by others.
“We have a responsibility to pray for fellow Muslims, and it is mandatory to do so, what more for leaders, because the leaders also pray for us,” he said when asked about the matter at a press conference after officiating the ceremony to declare the results for the Sijil Darjah Enam Agama (SDEA) examination at Sekolah Agama Bandar Kota Tinggi here today.
The owner of the Facebook account “Hezry Yasin” in a recent post claimed not to have raised his hands when prayers were read for the King and the royal family after the Friday prayer sermon at a mosque in Johor.
He also claimed that he only offered prayers for leaders who placed religion as a priority and fought for and defended Islam when it was threatened.
Yesterday, Johor Police chief CP M Kumar in a statement said 36 police reports had been lodged over the post.
“All the complainants have had their statements recorded, and the statements have been handed over to the Bukit Aman Classified Crimes Investigation Unit,” he said. — Bernama
