"Based on experiences, this mosque can accommodate around 250 thousand congregants," he remarked during a press conference on the performance of Eid prayer at Istiqlal Mosque, Jakarta, on Tuesday.
He added that Istiqlal Mosque could serve an even higher number of congregants by utilizing areas around it.
Umar explained that the mosque's management decided to prepare for accommodating an enormous number of congregants based on the fact that the house of worship had been serving about 50 thousand people participating in i'tikaf every day during Ramadan.
The grand imam then stated that President Joko Widodo and Vice President Ma'ruf Amin are planning to join hundreds of thousands of Muslims in performing Eid prayer at the mosque.
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On that note, he said the management of the mosque had been in coordination with the National Police (Polri) to ensure a proper security system during the prayer activity that will also feature a preaching titled "Solidifying Togetherness by Safeguarding National Unity and Integrity."
Umar revealed that his side had been coordinating with several offices located around the mosque to add more parking spaces.
"(Coordinating with) offices that have parking lots, such as Pertamina. For buses, we will use spaces around the National Monument. God Willing, everything will run smoothly if we follow directives of the police," he stated.
He expressed hope that this year's Eid al-Fitr prayer would be held in a safe, comfortable, smooth, and solemn manner.
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Translator: Sean F, Tegar Nurfitra
Editor: Yuni Arisandy Sinaga
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