THERE is always a first time for everything. Late yesterday (Dec 30), Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob called on Malaysians to resort to a more spiritual fashion to usher in 2022 rather than the typical rowdy way of celebrating New Year’s Eve.
This is very much as a gesture of respect and sympathy for the flood victims in several states as well as to contain the widespread of COVID-19 in light of the raging Omicron variant.
“I have called on the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Religious Affairs), Islamic Development Department of Malaysia (JAKIM) and Yayasan Dakwah Islamiah Malaysia (YADIM) to organise solat hajat and Malaysia Berzikir Ambang 2022 on Dec 31 at the Putra Mosque in Putrajaya,” he said in a series of tweets.
On that note, he urged Keluarga Malaysia (Malaysian Family) to join the Maghrib prayers and solat hajat at the mosque on Friday night (Dec 31).
“For those who can’t be there, they can follow the livestream on Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM) and TV Al-Hijrah,” he said, adding that mosques around the countries should organise similar events.
As for non-Muslims, Ismail Sabri suggested that they perform prayers according to their faith and religion at the same time.
“May our efforts be blessed, and Malaysia will be better than previous years,” he tweeted.
Meanwhile, Bukit Aman’s Department of Internal Security and Public Order director Datuk Hazani Ghazali said no New Year’s Eve celebration permits have been approved by the police nationwide.
He said this was to avoid the risk of COVID-19 outbreaks.
“Therefore, I have instructed standard operating procedure (SOP) monitoring teams throughout the country to conduct patrols and monitoring in popular spots to ensure that no people gather and carry out activities that violate the SOPs of the National Recovery Plan,” he told Bernama.
“I remind the public not to get involved in any new year’s celebration activities or gather in large numbers on the eve of the new year tomorrow (today) at any popular spots.”
In Kuala Lumpur, Dang Wangi District Police chief ACP Noor Dellhan Yahaya said no fireworks display would be held at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre (KLCC) and Pavilion shopping mall in the capital.
In Georgetown, the police will conduct the ‘omnipresence’ method of monitoring popular spots as well as roads across the state ahead of the New Year.
North East District Police chief ACP Soffian Santong said 146 officers and 821 policemen would carry out the operation throughout the state.
“This is because beginning tomorrow, Penang is likely to have up to a 40% increase in traffic flow due to school and year-end holidays,” he added. – Dec 31, 2021
