Segamat.com

2010/03/11
From Nst Online

THERE was a time when mosques were the place for the pious and the seeker of knowledge. It was a place where people congregate to pray, read the Quran and foster better ties among their brethren. Many would greet each other with the salam and be at peace in fulfilling religious obligations. It is one place that seemed to be a neutral point, where truce thrives even among the most bitter of enemies. No one dared to desecrate such a holy place. Even gossips were saved for a coffee shop chat or at home.

However those days are sadly long gone. Today, mosques have become the main target for petty thieves who are out there looking for shoes, at least in this country. It is not something strange if you were advised against wearing expensive shoes to the mosque. Shoe thieves are known to stalk near the shoe racks on the lookout for that particular brand.

That is why some have opted to wear slippers when heading to the mosque. It is true that some mosque goers are more comfortable wearing simple footwear for convenience during ablution. But at the same time, it is also a measure taken to save you from another trip to the shoe store. It has never been made known if police reports had ever been lodged over missing pairs of shoes at mosques.

I know of some friends who pray near shoe racks or somewhere near the entrances of mosques to guard against shoe thieves. As a Muslim, I am utterly embarrassed by this kind of behaviour.  Such an act can also be perceived as humorous by some, since some amateur thieves were also known to have stolen foul-smelling ones that were in the end, found discarded by the roadside.

However, some have decided to get more than just shoes during their trips to the mosque, as recently revealed in a case which took place in Segamat. A 16-year-old had been found stealing motorcycles from mosques in the district since last year. The school dropout is believed to be a leader of the infamous "Geng Motor Masjid".  I'm not really sure whether it was they themselves who came up with that name.

It sounds like a non-governmental organisation focusing on attracting Mat Rempits to carry out mosque activities. Back to the case, the gang leader was arrested at a house in Simpang Jabi at about 4.20am on Monday following a public tip-off. The group had been known to strip motorcycles bare of their spare parts before dumping the frames in Sungai Batu Badak.

Segamat district police chief Supt Abdul Majid Mohd Ali said police were looking for more gang members after the arrest. The stripped motorcycle engines were usually sold to Mat Rempits for a steal -- no pun intended -- at less than RM300 per unit. Sometimes, it is hard to imagine that people would go all the way just for the sake of a few ringgit.

They would overstep boundaries that are traditionally regarded sacrosanct by the masses. I'm not a pious man but I do know that stealing from mosques or any religious sites is downright pathetic.  There should be a sense of honour even among thieves.