"This Ramadan pesantren (Islamic boarding school) aims to move the learning process in schools to mosques and focus more on religious lessons," Padang Mayor Hendri Septa noted in Padang on Monday after the inauguration of the 1443 Hijri Ramadan Pesantren.
The activities of the Ramadan Islamic boarding school will be held at 1,270 mosques and musalla.
According to Septa, as the COVID-19 pandemic is ongoing, the students will be supervised by their respective teachers.
The learning material of Ramadan starts from memorizing the Quran, Dhikr, stories of prophets and companions, with the theme of realizing a strong generation of culture that loves mosques.
The Ramadan Islamic boarding school will be attended by students from grades 4 to 6 of elementary school and grades 7 to 9 of junior high school, starting after dawn until after Zuhr.
During Ramadan, non-Muslim students can go to their respective places of worship.
He noted that Ramadan pesantren is a commitment of the Padang administration, so students can always practice their religious teachings.
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"This is the 18th implementation, and it was not implemented in 2020 owing to the COVID-19 pandemic," he remarked.
During the implementation, the Padang city government collaborated with the Imam Bonjol State Islamic University of Padang.
Meanwhile, Ustad Abdul Somad, who was also present at the launch, viewed that the Ramadan pesantren program could be passed on to the current young generation by the regional heads.
"The position of district heads, mayors, and governors is for a while. Hence, make a program that can be passed on to children and grandchildren, one of which is Ramadan pesantren," he remarked.
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Translator: Ikhwan W, Kenzu T
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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