JOHOR BARU, Aug 25 — The Coordinating Council of the Federation of Johor Malay Non-Governmental Organisations (Gabung Johor) today urged the state government to maintain its current official weekend rest days on Friday and Saturday.

Gabung Johor president Zaini Atan said that the present official weekend was in honour of Friday (hari Jumaat, penghulu segala hari) being a blessed day of the week for Muslims in recognition of Islam as the official religion for the state.

"We believe that Friday and Saturday weekend rest days should be maintained to make it easier for Muslims to perform their Friday prayers.

"If the rest days are changed to Saturday and Sunday, Muslims will be in a hurry to perform their prayers on Friday, especially for government employees who work half-a-day on that particular day,” said Zaini during a media conference held at Restoran LC Catering in Melodies Garden here today.

He was joined by about 20 other members consisting of Malay-based business owners and groups calling for a retention of the current official weekend.

Since January 1, 2014, Johor’s official weekend rest days were changed to Friday and Saturday. The change had also reinstated the original weekend rest days of Friday and Saturday that had been implemented in the state since the country’s independence.

In addition, Zaini said the current Friday and Saturday rest days have an added advantage for the local economy in Johor.

He said it has become a norm for Johoreans to shop on Friday and Saturday, while Singaporeans will mainly shop on Sunday.

"So in all, there are three days in a week that will boost the economy.

"This will also make things easier for the public, including easing traffic congestion in busy areas for both Johoreans and Singaporeans on different days,” said Zaini.

The Johor government started observing Friday and Saturday as its official rest days following a decree from State Ruler Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar in conjunction with his 55th birthday celebration on November 23, 2013.

However, this had led to several challenges for the private sector, numbering more than 1.5 million employees, in Johor that observe the federal government’s Saturday and Sunday weekend.

Zaini pointed out that in order to coordinate the weekend rest days that are currently implemented, he suggested that the private sector also follow the official government mandated days on Friday and Saturday.

According to him, Gabung Johor’s proposal for the state government to maintain the current weekend rest days was not influenced by any individuals or political parties.

However, Zaini said more than 100 NGOs under Gabung Johor with a membership of more than 200,000 members will comply with any decision made by State Ruler Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar.

"His Majesty will determine whether the weekly rest days will be maintained or changed.

"We leave it to the wisdom of Sultan Ibrahim and will agree with any decision that he makes,” he said.

On Tuesday, Sultan Ibrahim was reported saying that he would not be rushed in making a decision about the state government’s proposal to change the state’s weekend rest days to Saturday and Sunday.

Prior to that on August 10, Johor Mentri Besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi presented the state government’s findings regarding the proposed Saturday and Sunday reversion to Sultan Ibrahim for the latter’s consideration.

Previously, the ongoing study on the proposed reversion of the southern state’s official weekend rest days involved various sectors such as the government, public, education, industry and banking, as well as the MEF.

It was first reported on June 14 that the Johor government is reviewing the current Friday and Saturday weekend rest days in the state following complaints by the public.

Following that, Malay Mail reported on June 20 that the state government may implement an official two-and-a-half-day weekend, with Friday as a half-day, followed by Saturday and Sunday as weekend rest days.

In Malaysia, Kedah, Kelantan, and Terengganu also observe Friday and Saturday as official weekend rest days.