IPOH, July 29 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today lambasted the Opposition for turning the Qunut Nazilah prayer into a political tool.

Anwar said prayers should be used appropriately for good purposes, and not to wish harm upon others.

"This prayer is not about politics, (and) the Mufti has provided guidance (on this). We are not against prayer... who says we are against prayer? We pray every day, after our prayers we make supplications, but not to curse others,” he said in his speech at the Kenduri Madani at Taman Koperasi Perpaduan 2 in Tambun here.

At a recent Dewan Rakyat session, Opposition MPs recited the Qunut Nazilah after the august House suspended MP Wan Ahmad Fayhsal Wan Ahmad of Machang for six months.

The prayer was led by PAS MP for Jasin, Zulkifli Ismail, who is also PAS Ulama Council vice-chief.

This prompted responses from various quarters, including Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail, who labelled the recitation of the Qunut Nazilah prayer to curse political opponents as extremist and radical.

However, Wan Ahmad Fayhsal has denied these claims, saying that the prayer was directed towards supporters of genocide, such as the investment firm BlackRock.

Meanwhile, Anwar questioned why Perikatan Nasional (PN) members did not recite the Qunut Nazilah during the administration of former Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, who invested approximately RM600 million from the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) into BlackRock.

"In 2020, PN, PAS and Bersatu allocated RM600 million to BlackRock, sourced from EPF funds. Why was it not considered wrong at that time, and why was the Qunut Nazilah prayer not recited?” Anwar asked.

The prime minister said the opposition should be praying for positive outcomes and expressing gratitude to the Unity Government for preventing Israeli ships from entering the country.

Separately, Anwar approved a RM200,000 allocation for road construction around the Ar-Rashid mosque in Taman Koperasi Perpaduan 2, Tambun.

He also took time to visit the victims of a fire that destroyed 10 houses in Kampung Manjoi, providing RM5,000 in aid to each affected household.

He visited the fire site and received a briefing from the fire department.

The fire, which occurred around 5pm yesterday, destroyed 10 homes, affecting six families and 15 individuals. — Bernama