The Ruling on the Recommendation of Publicizing the Phone Numbers of Scholars and Academic Departments for Fatwas

Your Eminence! It is perhaps a matter of stating the obvious to draw your attention to the good practice followed by the General Presidency for Islamic Affairs, Research and the Holy Places in the Kingdom, which is: publicizing the telephone numbers so that people can contact the scholar they wish to consult regarding a particular matter.
The Shaykh: Yes, this is correct and good.
The presenter: Perhaps the approval of this practice by the Presidency will also lead to it being adopted in other places?
The Shaykh: Publicizing the telephone number is good, because people need this at times when they are unable to listen to a program like *Nur 'ala al-Darb*, or when they are unable to send a written question, or similar situations.
So, in summary, people encounter needs that require them to have the scholars' telephone numbers so they can ask them, and this is good.
The presenter: May Allah reward you. So, are you calling for this to become a practice in all Muslim countries?
The Shaykh: Yes, and we also publicize this; because it should be publicized to the people. We are now publicizing the home telephone number: (4534444).
The presenter: All right.
The Shaykh: Yes.
The presenter: May Allah reward you. Is this for the home of Your Eminence, Shaykh 'Abd al-'Aziz ibn Baz, in Riyadh?
The Shaykh: Yes.
The presenter: May Allah reward you with good.
The Shaykh: There is another telephone number: (4351421). This other telephone number is: (4351421).
The presenter: May Allah reward you with good.
The Shaykh: Yes.