Sheikh Zayed Mosque Opens To The Public, Ganjar: Hopefully It Can Be A Center Of Excellent And A Place For Discussion

Ganjar Pranowo (Photo via Central Java Provincial Government)

Central Java Governor Ganjar Pranowo asked the public to take part in guarding the Sheikh Zayed Solo Grand Mosque which has been opened to the public. Ganjar wants the largest mosque in Solo to be a center of excellence, as a discussion room, study, and place to transmit goodness.

"The management of this mosque is in the Surakarta City Government. After opening it, the hope is that this mosque can function soon and many people will want to worship at the mosque because it is very good," said Ganjar while accompanying the working visit of Vice President Ma'ruf Amin in Surakarta, Wednesday, March 1.

At the opening of the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque by Vice President Ma'ruf Amin, Tuesday evening, February 28, there were actually many people who wanted to attend. However, the capacity for the event was limited. Even so, the enthusiasm of residents who came for the first congregational dawn prayer at the mosque was very large.

"Yesterday, when the Vice President opened it, it turned out that many people really wanted to attend, but their capacity was limited. So what was extraordinary was this morning at dawn for the first time together with the Vice President, which was extraordinary, masyaallah. People are also quite enthusiastic," he said.

This great enthusiasm will certainly not occur on the first day of opening a mosque to the public. According to Ganjar, a good mosque architecture is also a special attraction, so it has the potential to become a religious tourist destination.

"Well what is needed is let's keep it clean together, the park is guarded, basically not allowed to spill there. This will definitely be a new destination, especially if people who want to make a pilgrimage and so on will definitely be very interested in coming to this mosque. Usually many groups come," said Ganjar.

The Sheikh Zayed Solo Grand Mosque is expected not only to become a place of worship or a religious tourist destination but to become a center of excellence.

Moreover, in the mosque area, there will still be one project being carried out, namely the Islamic Center. This means that there will be more benefits that can be felt by the community with the existence of this mosque.

"Hopefully it will be useful, but we must guard it, because there is still one more stage, such as the Islamic Center to be built. Hopefully, we will increase all of our worship, as well as make the mosque a center of excellence. So people can worship, discuss, and transmit kindness from places of worship," he said.

One facility that also supports making the mosque a center of excellence is the existence of a library. According to Ganjar, currently many mosques also have libraries so that people can learn a lot.

"Yes, the center of excellence is there (pustration). People can discuss, conduct studies, and people can read a lot of books. Books of religion or maybe others. Many mosques now have libraries so people can learn a lot," he said.

It is known that Central Java Governor Ganjar Pranowo accompanied the visit of Vice President Ma'ruf Amin in Surakarta to open the Sheikh Zayed Solo Grand Mosque for the public. Wednesday morning March 1, morning, Ganjar and Ma'ruf Amin the inaugural congregational dawn prayer with the community.