JAKARTA - 12 thousand mosque imams in various regencies/cities in the East Java region received honorary money in 2022, each amounting to IDR 2.5 million.
Chairman of the Regional Board of the East Java Indonesian Mosque Council, M Roziqi, said the honor money was a program from the East Java Provincial Government.
"The value of honor received by the imam of the mosque in 2022 is greater than in previous years, which was Rp. 2.5 million per person. The previous years were Rp. 2 million per person," said Rozoqi, Tuesday, December 27, as reported by Antara.
The honor money for the imam of the mosque was first distributed in 2019, as a manifestation of the Nawa Bakti Jatim Berkah program initiated by the Governor of East Java Khofifah Indar Parawansa and Deputy Governor Emil Elestianto Dardak.
When Khofifah was just appointed Governor of East Java, she asked how many mosques in the province were.
"I said there were 43,000 mosques. Then he said he wanted to provide honorary funds to the mosque imams through the East Java Indonesian Mosque Council. So this program is the Governor's concern for the mosque's priests," he said.
For each mosque, he continued, it was only given to a priest. In 2019, honor money was given to as many as 11,000 mosque imams, in 2020 it was given to as many as 9,250 mosque imams, in 2021 it was given to as many as 9,350 mosque imams, and this year it was given to as many as 12 thousand mosque imams.
In the districts of East Java, or outside the city of Surabaya, the number of recipients of honor money varies every year, ranging from 300 to 500 mosque imams per year.
For example, in 2022, the district that received the highest honor money from the imam of the mosque was Jember, which was 575 imams. Followed by Malang Regency, as many as 550 mosque imams.
Roziqi ensured that in 2023 the honorary money program for mosque imams in East Java will continue.
"It is hoped that when Governor Khofifah's period ends, as many as 43,000 mosques in East Java have had their priests feel honorary money," he said.
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