- Biro Setpres
Jakarta – The Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) on Wednesday handed over zakat through the National Zakat Amil Agency (Baznas) at the State Palace, Jakarta.
The handover of Zakat was also attended by Vice President Ma'ruf Amin, and several ministers of the Advanced Indonesia Cabinet, as well as heads of high state institutions.
In his remarks, the President reminded every Muslim about the obligation to give zakat as a form of gratitude for all the blessings given by Allah SWT.
"By giving zakat, we strengthen the foundations of faith, help the needy, purify our souls from stinginess, increase inner peace," the Head of State remarked.
The President also hopes that paying zakat can be a perfect form of worship for Muslims in the month of Ramadan.
"May the zakat we spend complete our Ramadan worship, and increase our piety to Allah SWT," the President said.
On the other hand, the President also reminded Baznas, as a zakat collecting body, to distribute zakat on target.
"I advise that the zakat funds collected to be distributed on target, distributed to people who need it, giving happiness to the mustahik, and peace to the muzak," President Jokowi stated.
Meanwhile, Chairman of Baznas Noor Achmad in his report said that the Love Zakat Movement launched by President Jokowi in April 2021 had had a significant impact on the performance of Zakat collection nationally.
"The Love Zakat Movement that Mr. President and Mr. Vice President launched has had a huge impact on the performance of national zakat collection from various sectors, including ministries, institutions, agencies, state-owned enterprises, and the private sector," Achmad explained.
"It has influenced to the compliance of ASN throughout Indonesia in paying zakat. So, Indonesia grows rapidly, both in quantity and quality, both felt by muzaki and mustahik," Achmad added.
Achmad revealed that in 2023 the total collection of zakat, infaq, and alms (ZIS) at SKL Baznas and LAZ throughout Indonesia will reach IDR32 trillion, or an increase of 43.74 percent from before.
"At the central Baznas itself, it was recorded that collections grew by 39.8 percent, in 2023 IDR 881 billion was collected," Achmad informed.
On this occasion, Baznas also awarded the Life Time Achievement BAZNAS Award to the President of the Republic of Indonesia and the Vice President of the Republic of Indonesia for their big role regarding zakat.
