Groundbreaking Of The Great Mosque Of Surakarta, Jokowi's Son Gibran Rakabuming Invites Minister Erick And Minister Of Religion Yaqut Cholil

Wali Kota Solo Gibran Rakabuming Raka (Photo: Surakarta.go.id)

JAKARTA - The design of the Surakarta Grand Mosque (The Surakarta Grand Mosque) will resemble the Syeikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi. This mosque will be built on an area of 2.9 hectares on the land of the former Pertamina depot, Jl. Ahmad Yani No. 191, Gilingan, Banjarsari, Surakarta City.

The groundbreaking (Goundbreaking) will be held on Saturday, March 6 tomorrow and the plan is to attend several ministers such as Minister of BUMN Erick Thohir representing Coordinating Minister for Luhut, Indonesian Minister of Religion Yaqut Cholil Qoumas, Governor of Central Java Ganjar Pranowo, Minister of Energy and Infrastructure of the UAE and the ranks of regional officials .

Today, Friday, March 5, the Mayor of Solo, Gibran Rakabuming Raka, held an audience with the independent design and consulting firm, PT Arkonin, who designed the Great Mosque of Surakarta.

The eldest son of President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) welcomed 3 representatives of Abu Dhabi (UAE) Mohamad Ali Rasid and his colleagues who attended the meeting.

"Thank you for the arrival of gentlemen from Abu Dhabi and PT Arkonin. I hope that the mosque that will be built will strengthen the good relations between Indonesia and the United Arab Emirates, "explained Gibran as quoted by the surakarta.go.id website, Friday, March 5.

Meanwhile, Nur, a representative from PT Arkonin, said that preparations had been made by land clearing to lay the groundwork for the construction of a mosque with a capacity of 10 thousand worshipers, Saturday, March 6.

"The mosque we designed is slightly tilted towards the Qibla. To the east there will be a boulevard. On the front side we make a fountain combined with the local trees of Solo City. The parking lot is on the side so it doesn't interfere with the front view, ”he explained.

The Grand Mosque in Surakarta will be able to accommodate 10 thousand worshipers. Meanwhile, the mosque in Abu Dhabi can accommodate 40 thousand worshipers. However, there are still 3 main domes like the original mosque.

Apart from being a place of worship, the mosque can also be used as religious tourism. The beautiful shape of the mosque is also equipped with a very charming lighting arrangement and quality materials, including using quality brass and copper from Central Java.

Meanwhile, representatives of Abu Dhabi appreciated the welcome and friendly service from the Mayor of Surakarta and its citizens.

"We hope this can strengthen the relationship between the two countries. Thank you for the award with the warm welcome of the mosque construction from us. Hoping for the future, the friendship is getting closer and closer. We are very happy to travel to Solo, ”he said.