Cheating God

Cheating God

Indonesia is renowned as a nation with a long history rich in
culture. That culture apparently has evolved to embrace
corruption.

The latest revelation that hundreds of billions of rupiah in
haj pilgrimage funds have been misappropriated reflects just how
far some of us have descended to become a nation of cheats.

Even God is not safe from being exploited.

An investigation by an interdepartmental anticorruption team
has unveiled suspicions of a long-running scam at the Ministry of
Religious Affairs involving funds deposited for the annual haj
pilgrimage. The ministry's director general for Islamic guidance
and haj management has been detained over the suspected offense.
As many as three former ministers could also be implicated in the
affair.

News of the scam first came to the fore when an audit by the
Development Finance Controller (BPKP) found various
irregularities in the management of the funds.

The case was then taken up as by the newly formed
interdepartmental corruption eradication team as its introductory
case.

If these allegations are reconfirmed in court, it will
highlight what has effectively been a public secret for many,
many years.

For a long time the public has observed from afar with a wary
eye the management of the haj by ministry officials. Though few
would dare assert it in public, allegations of suspected
corruption have always been talked about in hushed tones.

Each year trillions of rupiah from private funds are paid by
haj pilgrims to the government which has a monopoly on organizing
and licensing the holy visit to Mecca.

For the last few years Indonesia has sent an average of
200,000 pilgrims to Saudi Arabia. The latest cost for the haj
pilgrimage set by the government is around Rp 28 million
(US$2,900) per person. The accumulated amount over the years a
mindboggling figure.

One can just imagine the pots of gold standing before ministry
officials. Finally, the temptation was too hard to resist.

It seems that in this country corruption knows no
discrimination. After reports of stealing from state projects,
the poor and the sick, there is now no inhibition about stealing
from God.

For the affluent urban elite, the pilgrimage almost seems like
a holiday which they undertake every few years. But for most
Indonesian Muslims, the pilgrimage is a life culminating
experience -- an apex in the long journey to attain personal
significance other than material accomplishment. It is on a par
with marriage, the birth of a child or death of a loved one as a
life altering experience.

With prodigious faith in the divine, those with limited
disposable income spend their life savings to fulfill God's
summons. Others peddle their livestock or sell the patch of land
which has supported the family for decades. All in a desire to be
closer to the Almighty.

The saddest part of the latest scandal is that it is believed
to be perpetrated by people whose profession demanded a higher
moral character.

This is not a simple markup in the construction of a bridge,
or siphoning a little extra from a state sponsored business
project.

The pilgrims are the simplest of folk who surrender their
material possessions not for profit, but for spiritual
redemption. That someone would have the gall to exploit the
holiest of rituals for Muslims shows they have little respect for
their fellow man, or God for that matter.

Given the perceived "rot" concerning the haj affair which has
likely gone on for years, the interdepartmental team's
investigation is likely to uncover more skeletons in the closet.

We fully support the team's efforts and encourage them to
pursue their investigation resiliently. The fact that they have
chosen to delve into corruption at the Ministry of Religious
Affairs is a strategic step.

It touches on an issue which the public is sympathetic about
too -- since all Muslims dream of going on the pilgrimage at
least once in their life. But it is also an "easy" ministry to
shake down given its relatively limited political clout. Despite
the billions of rupiah, a shakedown of this ministry has few
political repercussions.

This is the start the new team needs. Once emboldened with
greater public trust and self confidence it is our expectation
that, with God now on its side, the interdepartmental team will
continue to break down doors in other more sensitive government
offices.