TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) deemed President Prabowo Subianto's purchase of sacrificial cattle using the state budget legitimate. According to the chair of the Fatwa Division at MUI, Asrorun Niam Sholeh, in Islamic law, a head of state is indeed encouraged to perform sacrifices on behalf of the country for the welfare of the people, as reinforced in the hadiths (codified oral teachings of Islamic prophet Muhammad).
"As narrated by Imam Bukhari, it is recommended for the leader, in the context of Indonesia meaning the president, to buy sacrificial animals through 'baitul mal' (Islamic concept of treasury)," he said in a written statement quoted by the MUI website on Thursday, May 28, 2026.
According to him, the state budget can be interpreted as a contextual form of 'baitul mal' in the modern era. Thus, he said, the president's sacrificial animals become the property of the people since they are purchased with state funds.
"The state budget is used to distribute the sacrificial meat to citizens, meaning it's for the benefit of the people. There is no issue in terms of Islamic law," Niam said.
Furthermore, according to him, the president's purchase of sacrificial animals through presidential social aid is essentially the same as social assistance distribution. According to him, there was no misuse of funds in the procurement of sacrificial animals from state funds.
Instead of questioning Prabowo's sacrificial cattle purchases, Niam urged the public to view this policy in a positive light. According to him, Eid al-Adha is the right time to allocate state funds to distribute sacrificial meat for Indonesian citizens.
President Prabowo purchased sacrificial animals worth Rp100 billion through the presidential social aid budget. Deputy Minister of State Secretariat Juri Ardiantoro said that 1,098 cattle were purchased and distributed to all regions across the country.
Each head of cattle weighs about 800 kilograms to 1.3 tons, distributed across 552 regions, comprising 38 provinces and 514 regencies/cities. Every region received at least one sacrificial cattle, except for 46 regencies/cities that did not possess cattle of the required size. "These regions receive two cattles," he said.
In addition to the regions, Prabowo also handed over 500 cattles to educational institutions such as Islamic boarding schools, community figures, and religious figures. "So there are 1,098 cattle in total," he said.
Ervana Trikarinaputri contributed to the writing of this article.
Read: Purbaya Says He's Unaware of State Funds Used for Sacrificial Cattle
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