March 27, 2025 | 10:08 am
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Deputy Minister of Religion, Raden Muhammad Syafi'i, provided clarification regarding his statement that had caused controversy. Previously, Syafi'i had said that the phenomenon of mass organizations asking for Eid holiday allowance funds (THR) from entrepreneurs was part of the culture.
Syafi'i said that he firmly rejected the actions of mass organizations that often asked for THR before Eid. According to Syafi'i, such actions are very bad and do not comply with the cultural values of the Indonesian nation. "Asking, especially by forcing, that is clearly not our culture," he said as quoted from the official release of the Ministry of Religion, Wednesday, March 26, 2025.
He emphasized that the Ministry of Religion has never approved of the mass organizations' actions of requesting THR by force. The reason is, from a religious perspective, this is clearly strictly prohibited. "Religion does not teach that. Therefore, it should not be done. We reject it," said Syafi'i. "Religion teaches to give, not ask."
Regarding the statement he had made earlier, Syafi'i considered there was a misunderstanding. The culture he meant was a culture of sharing, not a culture of begging. "What I mean by our culture is giving to each other, especially on Eid al-Fitr. Since long ago, we have been taught to care," he said.
Previously, there was a lot of discussion on social media regarding Syafi'i's response to the actions of mass organizations that often ask for THR from entrepreneurs ahead of Eid. At that time, Syafi'i responded casually when asked about the phenomenon.
"I think that's been Indonesian Eid culture since time immemorial. There's no need to question it," said Syafi'i in a video circulating in cyberspace as quoted by Tempo, Wednesday, March 26, 2025. "Yes, sometimes I get it. Sometimes I don't," said Syafi'i while laughing.
Minister of Religious Affairs Nasaruddin Umar said that the statement made by Syafi'i was not the official stance of the Ministry of Religious Affairs. He emphasized that the statement was Syafi'i's personal view and had nothing to do with the Ministry of Religious Affairs. "That was the personal statement of the Deputy Minister of Religion," said Nasaruddin when contacted by Tempo via short message application, Wednesday, March 26, 2025.
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