SHAH ALAM, Oct 31 — The Sultan of Selangor Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah has ordered that the number of worshippers performing Friday prayers be increased for mosques and surau in the state that are allowed to hold Friday prayers.

“For example, the Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah Mosque will be able to allow up to 3,500 worshippers compared to 2,000 currently.

"For district mosques (the number) is increased to between 700 to 1,000 worshippers depending on the total capacity of each of the mosque while (the number of worshippers allowed) in institutional mosques is increased to between 500 to 1,200 and for management mosques, between 400 to 700 worshippers," said the ruler in a statement posted on the Selangor Royal official Facebook page today.

He said this after examining the latest data on the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic which showed that the daily death statistics in the state had dropped to one digit.

According to statistics, as of October 27, the number of deaths due to Covid-19 in Selangor amounted to 9,581 people, of which half were Malay Muslims.

However, with this latest relaxation, the ruler strongly reminded worshippers to view the matter seriously and continue to be careful and always abide by the standard operating procedures (SOP) set by the Ministry of Health and the Selangor Islamic Religious Department when performing their religious obligations at mosques.

At the same time, he hoped that all the people would shoulder the responsibility to curb the spread of the Covid-19 outbreak.

"We must win and return to normal life and I do not want negligence in complying with the SOP to be the cause of the rise in Covid-19 cases that will lead to the re-implementation of the movement control order," he added.

The Sultan said people can no longer afford to face another lockdown that would make their daily life difficult and affect their source of income.

He also called on the people, especially the Muslims to perform prayers and continue to pray to Allah SWT so that the state and the beloved country are protected against pandemics, plagues and disasters. — Bernama