The Grand Mufti of the Kingdom has prohibited imams and callers to prayer from splitting half their wages with persons filling in for them in their absence, saying their deputies should instead be given the whole pay packet. Al-Hayat daily reported Tuesday that Abdul Aziz Bin Abdullah Aal Al-Sheikh, speaking on Riyadh Radio, described positions in mosques as “only for the most competent” and “not to be haggled over”. “Those who are capable of the work should commit to it, and those who are not should excuse themselves and vacate it,” Aal Al-Sheikh said. The Grand Mufti made the remarks on Monday in response to a prayer caller who enquired on air whether it was lawful to grant half of his salary to a foreigner who was filling in for him. “No, haram!” responded Aal Al-Sheikh. “If you haven't called the prayer then give the whole salary to the one who has. Sharing it half and half with the person deputizing for you is a violation.” Persons appointed at mosques, according to Al-Hayat, can be suspended or dismissed for “lack of work discipline, failure to care for the mosque, or tasking someone else with their work”.
