Hundreds of people who are members of the Betawi Rempug Forum (FBR) held a demonstration in front of the Office of the Ministry of Religion (Ministry of Religion) Central Jakarta, Friday (25/2). They urged President Jokowi to remove the Minister of Religion Ruby Cholil Qoumas.
This action and urge to withdraw was the result of Yaqut’s statement equating the sound of the call to prayer with the sound of a dog barking. As a result of this action, the traffic flow on the road in front of the Ministry of Religion was stagnated, police officers seemed to regulate passing vehicles.
“What we demand is the President to dismiss Mr. Yaqut Cholil, because he has said something inappropriate. The sound of the call to prayer is likened to a dog barking,” said one of the orators, Maryadi.
Maryadi said that instead of being busy taking care of a mosque, it is better for Yaqut to take care of other, more useful things.
“He should have invited congregational prayers, prospered the mosque. If we are Muslims, we must love the call to prayer. Many people get guidance because of the call to prayer,” said Maryadi.
Previously, Minister of Religion Yaqut Cholil Qoumas drew criticism for comparing the sound of the call to prayer with the sound of a dog barking. He conveyed this when explaining the rules for using mosque tiles as stated in the Circular Letter of the Minister of Religion Number 5 of 2022.
“Let’s imagine again, we are Muslim, then we live in a non-Muslim environment, then our non-Muslim brother’s house of worship says the toa five times a day out loud at the same time, how does it feel?” said Yaqut in Pekanbaru, Wednesday (23/2).
“The simplest thing is, our neighbors are in the same complex, for example, both front and back, all dogs, for example, barking at the same time, are we disturbed?” Yaqut added.
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