For a lot of us, an event, festival or concert that we’ve been saving up for months is something we extremely look forward to as we count down the days to do something out of the ordinary.
However, some people seem to believe that most us have our priorities wrong and that we should be focusing on other things instead.
Recently, PAS leader Ahmad Dusuki Abdul Rani who is famous for his Islamic preaching released a statement on his Facebook page after finding out that concert tickets to Indonesian rock band ‘Dewa 19’ were sold out within an hour.
In his statement, Ahmad Dusuki wrote, “Why are tickets sold out? Because you’re excited, right? The glitter of the world…”
“Mosques don’t even need tickets! Religious events are the path to heaven, there is no need to pay but why are we not excited? (Is it) because the hereafter is far away? We and the hereafter are as close as the layers of an onion! Get ready,” he added.
Why the need to guilt-trip?
The news has sparked outrage on social media as Malaysians slammed Ahmad Dusuki on his comments. A number of them condemned him for appearing to guilt-trip Malaysians.
“Can you people stop treating religion like some sort of fandom that always has to be number 1 on the Billboard top 100,” questioned one user.
Another commented, “Just guilt tripping people the whole time. I thought only insurance agents like to do this, turns out that religious preachers are the same.”
Meanwhile, a couple of users said that instead of complaining and guilt-tripping, he should instead find ways to make it more attractive and interesting for people.
“If you know that few people are going for religious events, why don’t you multiply your efforts to encourage people to come? That is how you should respond,” said a user.
Another netizen commented, “Be more creative. But instead you go on blaming other people. Think (of) how to get people to join.”
They suggested doing activities such as community clean ups, potting plants and taking care of the environment activities.
“To me, that is even more Islamic.”
What do you think of his comments? Do you agree or disagree?
Also read: Can Afford To Buy Concert Tickets? Then You Shouldn’t Complain About Living Costs, Says UKM Prof
