KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 9 — Muslims today celebrated the Maulidur Rasul celebrations with parades and ‘selawat’ (praises to Prophet Muhammad) events in remembrance of the sacrifices of Prophet Muhammad in spreading Islam.

In Melaka, the morning drizzle did not dampen the spirit of more than 5,000 participants from 118 contingents who took part in the two-kilometre parade from Tun Fatimah Stadium, Bukit Serindit to the Melaka Islamic Centre through Jalan Taman Bandaraya-Jalan Bukit Piatu-Jalan Bukit Baru.

Yang Dipertua Negeri of Melaka Tun Mohd Ali Rustam, Chief Minister Datuk Seri Sulaiman Md Ali, State Secretary Datuk Zaidi Johari and the state exco line-up also joined the parade.

In Perak, Sultan Nazrin Shah said the legacy inherited from the Prophet Muhammad must be refreshed by rejuvenating the ummah development movement with the active involvement of more youth.

"The youth need to be trusted to be at the forefront, inject new dynamism and play a significant role as a game changer. The presence of teenagers must be recognised in order to implement community development programmes that are more contemporary and relevant to current needs and challenges,” said the Sultan of Perak at the state-level Maulidur Rasul celebration at the Bangunan Perak Darul Ridzuan in Ipoh.

At the event, Sultan Nazrin also handed over awards to mosque officials, preachers, Keluarga Mithali, non-governmental organisation personalities and media practitioners.

In Pahang, a total of 33 teams comprising various departments, agencies and schools participated in the parade in conjunction with the celebration of Maulidur Rasul which began at about 7.30am at the Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah Silver Jubilee Hall in Kuantan.

It was launched by Tengku Panglima Raja Colonel Tengku Amir Nasser Ibrahim Shah Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah.

Independent preacher Zul Ramli Mohamad Ghazali was announced as the state’s ‘Tokoh Maulidur Rasul’.

Madrasah An Nabawiyyah (Lil Banin) Pulau Tawar, Jerantut principal Wan Hilmy Wan Mohamed received the ‘Anugerah Ummah’; Universiti Putra Malaysia lecturer Mohd Roslan Mohd Saludin was given the ‘Anugerah Daie’ while Sekolah Kebangsaan Kempadang received the education award.

In Selangor, Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah launched the Akademi Literasi Al-Quran Negeri Selangor which is established under the Selangor Islamic Religious Department (JAIS) and aimed at giving serious emphasis towards producing Muslims who are skilled in reading and teaching, able to practice and embellish the Quran.

In Terengganu, a total of 2,340 participants from 78 contingents walked 3.4 km starting from Kampung Tok Jiring Synthetic Field to Terengganu Sports Complex in Gong Badak.

The Sultan of Terengganu Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin and the Sultanah of Terengganu Sultanah Nur Zahirah as well as the Yang Dipertuan Muda of Terengganu Tengku Muhammad Ismail Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin were present at the Maulidur Rasul event held at the Terengganu Sports Complex Indoor Stadium.

In his speech, Sultan Mizan said the celebration of Maulidur Rasul should be welcomed by the people as a spirit booster to work harder to achieve success in life based on the teachings of Prophet Muhammad. — Bernama