Besides furoda visas, the public should beware of mujamalah visa offers
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Deputy Minister for Hajj and Umrah (Wamenhaj) Dahnil Anzar Simanjuntak has reminded the public to be wary of mujamalah visa offers that frequently circulate, especially on the internet, as they lack certainty.
“Regarding mujamalah visas, that is under the authority of Saudi Arabia. Whether they exist or not, only the Saudi Arabian side can answer,” Dahnil said at the Ministry of Religious Affairs office in Jakarta on Wednesday.
Nevertheless, Dahnil cautioned the public not to easily trust parties claiming to provide such visas.
He assessed that the certainty level of mujamalah visas is very low compared to regular hajj visas and special hajj visas based on official quotas.
“What is certain is the hajj visa based on quotas; beyond that, the level of uncertainty is high. Because there are people selling visas on the internet as if they can get mujamalah visas, the certainty level is very low,” he said.
According to him, the proliferation of offers for visas outside official hajj visas, with promises of quick departures, has the potential to harm prospective pilgrims. Therefore, the public is urged to be more careful.
“Don’t let pilgrims be tempted by promises of mujamalah or furoda visas,” Dahnil said.
Previously, the Ministry of Religious Affairs emphasised that the Saudi Arabian Government is not issuing furoda hajj visas for this year’s pilgrimage, so the public is asked to be vigilant if there are offers for departures using such visas.
“There are none, so this year Saudi is not issuing furoda hajj visas. So, the clear legal visa is the hajj visa,” Dahnil said.
Dahnil stated that the prevalence of hajj departure offers without queues through social media is a practice that must be watched out for, as it has the potential to be a scam modus operandi or illegal hajj.
Currently, the Ministry of Religious Affairs together with the National Police will form a Task Force for the Prevention of Illegal Hajj, one of whose duties is to crack down on all forms of modus operandi for non-procedural hajj departures.