The government has decided that congregations who want to perform prayers in the mosque are not obliged to bring a prayer mat.
According to the Senior Minister (Security Cluster), Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob, he stated that after hearing the appeal submitted by the public through the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Religious Affairs), Datuk Sri Dr. Haji Zulkifli Mohamad Al-Bakri, the government has decided not to make it obligatory to bring a prayer mat in the mosque but encourages the congregation to bring it.
“After getting the views from the Ministry of Health Malaysia (MOH) and the whole meeting, we agreed that carrying a prayer mat is no longer made a mandatory matter which if there is no prayer mat cannot be allowed to enter to pray, we can allow. However we still encourage you to bring your own prayer rug,” said Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob.
“Since the prayer mat is no longer mandatory but we can not compromise in terms of security, then face mask is mandatory. There is no compromise in terms of face covering in the mosque because the prayer mat is no longer an obligatory thing,” he added.
Source: BERNAMA