![](bg2.png)
business information. Furthermore, Riswan (2014)
contends that reports will provide the financial
information to be used in the decision-making
process, thereby not only assisting that process, but
also acting as an information medium on
accountability for all stakeholders. Thus, accounting
became very important in the mosque as a method of
attaining accountability for all parties. Further,
because funds from the wider community are
involved, these should become the responsibility of
those involved in managerial decisions regarding
their use, if the community is to continue to trust that
they have been invested carefully.
Research related to accountability has uncovered
the link between it and religion (e.g Kiswanto &
Mukhibat, 2011; Randa, Iwan, Ludigdo, &
Sukoharsono, 2011). It focused on the link between
accounting and accountability, and religion with
regard to moral and ethical order. Research on the
organization of the Islamic religion was carried out
by Simanjuntak and Januarsi (2011), Princess
(2013), and Hanafi (2011). It finds that the managers
of a religious organization need to understand the
importance of transparency as an embodiment of
honesty, but that they still have shortcomings in
terms of human resources that are weak in
comprehending good accountability within the
organization.
Moreover, professionalism means a
responsibility to act in a way that more than merely
fulfills your own duties as well as the laws and
regulations of the community (James, Arens, &
Loebbecke, 2008). Lekatompessy (2003) elucidates
the opinion that someone can be considered
professional if he meets three criteria: has the skills
to carry out tasks in accordance with his field;
carries out a task or professional job by adhering to
standards of the profession and the duty; and
complying with the ethics of the profession.
Therefore, a person deemed to be professional is
someone who will manage his task properly. Based
on the theory of ‘A Clash of Jurisdictional’
(expressed by Abbott, 1988, in Januarsi &
Simanjuntak, 2011), there is incompatibility of
understanding among different professions to an
extent that triggers conflict between accountants and
religious leaders. Accounting is also influenced by
the understanding of spirituality, through which
people who possess that trait will be influenced by
spiritual understanding, while those who are not
religious will assume that accounting as a science is
free from spiritual influences.
Accountability actually arises as a logical
consequence of the existence of a relationship
between top management (agent) and the owner
(principal) – a dynamic relationship that appears in
the form of principal and agent. The right
information will reduce occurrence of the situation
whereby managers have access to information,
unknown to outsiders, over the company’s
prospects, a condition often referred to as
asymmetric information. In this case, the principal
authorizes the agent to perform the activity of
operating the organization. As a consequence of this
authority, the agent has to be held responsible and
accountable to the principal for his activities
(Muhammad, 2006). However, accounting practices
outside business are often neglected, with religious
organizations being no exception. In general, there is
a perception that implementation of accounting
practices in religious institutions is somewhat less
advanced, and a few studies have cautioned that
these bodies need the same standards, or at least the
same degree of attention, as in the private sector.
Although it is clear that accounting is not something
extraordinary in a religious organization like a
mosque, since funds from donations from the
general public are involved, religious organizations
are expected to manage and report on them in detail
in order to be accountable for their use.
Accountability is not just about compliance with
applicable standards or laws, but rather it concerns
the objectives of the organization and public trust.
Leaders of nonprofit organizations are under a bright
spotlight to pay more attention to forms of
accountability strategies that can help them achieve
the mission of their organization and create public
confidence Alnoor (2010). In their study,
Simanjuntak and Januarsi (2011) explain that
accounting practices in a religious organization will
not interfere with its activities; rather, they will help
create its integrated financial information that is
useful for increased funding and good financial
management. Therefore, the executive board of an
organization should already be making good reports
that can be understood by all stakeholders to realize
good accountability. This study aims to reveal a
religious organization's accountability through
governance exercised by the trustees of the national
mosque of Al Akbar Surabaya, whose funds mainly
come from government and the community, so that
the community. Furthermore, it serves as an
evaluation of the administrators of the mosque and
adds anti-mainstream literature in qualitative
accounting research.
JCAE Symposium 2018 – Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics Symposium 2018 on Special Session for Indonesian Study
356