The ban on Friday prayers is finally announced, on 19 March
The Brunei man who attended the tabligh event in KL, fell ill with Coronavirus, on 7 March. The Minister of Religious Affairs, Zulkifli Mohamad Al-Bakri, could have…and should have suspended Friday prayers from 13 March onwards.
Instead Zulkifli said that Friday prayers were to continue as usual but the sermons should be shortened
He is not taking the threat of Coronavirus seriously.
What use is a shorter sermon, when the person who attends the prayer could be infected in the bus on his way to the mosque. Or, he could be performing his ablutions at the mosque and an infected person coughs or sneezes on him.
I also notice in the clip that Zulkifli has not read the guideline by the Minister of Health issued in February, to avoid close contact and to keep a safe distance of 1-2 metres from the next person.
Why must Zulkifli wait for a fatwa to ban Friday prayers, or for Muhyiddin Yassin, who is slow at the best of times, to act?
He should be more proactive and act for the best interests and for the good health of his congregation.
On 9 March it was reported that Saudi Arabia stopped accepting umrah visitors. Mosques in the middle east banned large gatherings and suspended prayers. Zulkifli finally issued the ban, 19 days later. He should have acted earlier.
Many ulamas lack common sense. Their irresponsibility is part of the problem we face in the nation.
