Did the President of Religious Affairs mispronounce the Shahada?

Diyanet President Prof. Dr. Ali Erbaş, who performed the opening ceremonies of Hz. Ali Mosque and Vasfiye Turna Hafizlik Boarding Quran Course, which were completed in Yalova in recent days, performed Friday prayer at Hz. Ali Mosque. Afterwards, Erbaş, who spoke at the opening ceremony held in the courtyard of the mosque, thanked those who contributed to the construction of the Quran course and cut the opening ribbon. The video of Ali Erbaş reciting the Shahada during the opening became a subject of debate. Allegations were made that the Shahada was pronounced incorrectly.

The Arabic pronunciation, "Eşhedü en lâ ilâhe illallah ve eşhedü enne Muhammeden abdühû ve resûlüh," was pronounced by Ali Erbaş as "Eşhedü en lâ ilâhe illallah ve eşhedü enne Muhammeden resûlüh." While these images became a subject of debate, no statement has been made yet.

A TRANSLATOR WAS CALLED WHEN ASKED A QUESTION IN ARABIC

After thanking those who contributed to the construction of the Quran course and cutting the opening ribbon, President Erbaş toured the Quran course with his companions and received information from the officials. Yalova Governor Dr. Hülya Kaya, President of the Quran Examination and Recitation Board of the Presidency of Religious Affairs Dr. Hafiz Osman Şahin, Yalova Provincial Mufti İlyas Yılmaztürk, and citizens attended the openings. The images of Erbaş reciting the Shahada during the opening brought to mind the moments when a translator was called for an Arabic question asked during his visit to Iraq before.

"IF CONSCIENCES CANNOT PREVENT EVIL, LAWS COME INTO PLAY"

Continuing his speech by stating that mosques are the adornment of cities, Ali Erbaş said, "Mosques are the places where the name of Allah is always mentioned and the places where the testimony, which is the foundation of religion, echoes the earth. Our minarets are our greatest symbols." After his speech, President Erbaş cut the opening ribbon of the mosque with his companions. Then, attending the Vasfiye Turna Hafizlik Boarding Quran Course Opening Ceremony, Diyanet President Erbaş used the following expressions in his speech: "Imam Ghazali says that there are three ways to eliminate evil on earth, one of which is conscience. We need to educate consciences. If all these schools and educational institutions cannot educate consciences, there is a deficiency. We need to complete that deficiency. Imam Ghazali says that if consciences cannot prevent evil, laws come into play. Then he says, without the consciousness of the afterlife, you cannot eliminate evil."

*The Arabic pronunciation, "Eşhedü en lâ ilâhe illallah ve eşhedü enne Muhammeden abdühû ve resûlüh," means "I bear witness that there is no god but Allah, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and Messenger."