Groundbreaking Ceremony Held for First Mosque in Indonesia’s New Capital
President Joko Widodo on Wednesday led the groundbreaking ceremony for the first state mosque in Nusantara.
The Indonesian government is relocating the capital to Borneo island to replace the overcrowded and sinking Jakarta on Java island, with the $32 billion megaproject scheduled for completion in 2045.
With the first phase of building set to end in 2024, Widodo inaugurated the construction of various buildings in Nusantara on Wednesday, including the mosque, a branch of the country’s biggest postal service firm Pos Indonesia, and a broadcast studio for the RRI state radio network.
The $62 million mosque will be built in a complex that will eventually house other places of worship, as the government will also erect Christian churches, and Buddhist, Hindu, and Chinese temples, Widodo noted.
“The construction value is about 940 billion rupiahs ($62 million), as this mosque will be huge … I hope this mosque will represent Indonesia’s diversity and serve as a space to increase our faith and piety,” he said during the groundbreaking ceremony.
“I want this mosque to be an example for other mosques in the world, and for it to showcase Indonesia’s unique qualities.”
The state mosque in Nusantara has been designed by Balinese sculptor Nyoman Nuarta at Widodo’s request. Nuarta is one of Indonesia’s most famous visual artists and creator of the country’s tallest statue, Garuda Wisnu Kencana, located in Bali.
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The 72-year-old is also the designer behind other main structures in Nusantara, including the new state palace.
“This event signifies the start of the mosque construction, which will have a capacity of 22,317 worshippers, and will eventually be increased to 61,392,” Religious Affairs Minister Yaqut Cholil Qoumas said.
“Philosophically, this structure will be built according to the values from the Quran, which says that we must maintain the balance between good relations with God and good relations between human beings.”
Widodo formally launched the new capital city project in 2019, in what has been widely seen as an attempt to seal his legacy before the end of his second and final term in office which ends this year.
More than 204 million Indonesians will head to the polls on Feb. 14 to choose the country’s new president, vice president, and legislators.
Source: Arab News
