Soeharto assures public of proper use of haj fund<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): President Soeharto stated yesterday that the
\ngovernment will not reimburse the interest it earns from the huge
\nfund it has collected from haj pilgrims, but promised the money
\nwould be put to good use for the benefit of Moslems.<\/p>\n
"Should we refund the money earned from the banking service
\nfee? I think not, because we will use it to beef up Islam's
\nstrength," Soeharto told a group of ulemas from Central Java,
\nAntara reported.<\/p>\n
For the third time in as many weeks, President Soeharto met
\nwith ulemas to discuss a wide range of issues. Yesterday, 73
\nulemas from Central Java got their turn. Previously, the head of
\nstate received ulemas from East Java and West Java.<\/p>\n
The President felt obliged to address the haj fund issue
\nbecause questions were raised about the money now that the
\ngovernment requires all would-be pilgrims to pay the full fee in
\nadvance.<\/p>\n
The government has already accepted payments from 195,000
\npeople who registered for the 1996 pilgrimage by Sept. 18. They
\neach paid the full fee of Rp 7.29 million ($3,200). Previously,
\nwould be pilgrims were only required to leave a deposit and then
\npay the rest of the money closer to their departure dates.<\/p>\n
Minister of Religious Affairs Tarmizi Taher, during a hearing
\nwith the House of Representatives on Thursday, said the
\ngovernment stands to earn up to Rp 50 billion in interest
\nearnings a year from the haj fund.<\/p>\n
House members, while not questioning the fund, cautioned the
\ngovernment about the term "interest earning" because interest is
\nconsidered usury in Islam and is therefore forbidden. They
\nsuggested the government find a word to replace "interest".<\/p>\n
President Soeharto, who was accompanied by Tarmizi during
\nyesterday's talks, explained that some of the money would be
\nconverted into U.S. dollars because the government must pay for
\ncertain services incurred in Saudi Arabia in the American
\ncurrency.<\/p>\n
Permanent fund<\/p>\n
The income generated from this haj fund will be turned into a
\n"permanent fund" which in turn will generate income from
\ninterest, he said.<\/p>\n
Soeharto then related his experience in managing the Dharmais
\nFoundation, one of several charity foundations that he heads as a
\nprivate citizen.<\/p>\n
Dharmais, which began with an initial fund of Rp 30 million,
\nhas now grown into quite a "huge sum", he said.<\/p>\n
He did not give a precise figure, but pointed out that the
\nfoundation has built 700 mosques and over 1,000 orphanages from
\nthe interest earned on the permanent fund.<\/p>\n
"The interest from the (haj) permanent fund could be used for
\nthe benefit of the (Moslem) community. The fund will be managed
\nopenly and transparently, subject to checks by anyone," he said.<\/p>\n
Every region could ask the minister of religious affairs for
\nmoney from the interest, he said. "The minister will go to the
\nregions to assess their need."<\/p>\n
During the talk, the President also explained the limit on the
\nnumber of Indonesian haj pilgrims. It has been set at 195,000 by
\nthe Saudi Arabian government.<\/p>\n
"We have to abide by this quota regulation," he said.<\/p>\n
Those who can't travel next year, can perform the pilgrimage
\nthe following year, he promised further. (emb)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/soeharto-assures-public-of-proper-use-of-haj-fund-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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