Former Religious Affairs Ministry Aide Ordered Hajj Fee Refunds as Parliamentary Special Committee Emerged
The Indonesian Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has revealed new evidence regarding the destruction of evidence in the alleged corruption case involving additional hajj quotas. Former Special Staff to the Religious Affairs Minister, Isfan Abidal Aziz (known as Gus Alex), allegedly ordered the return of deposit funds from numerous Special Hajj Operators (PIHK) immediately after the Indonesian Parliament formed a Special Committee on Hajj.
Deputy for Prosecution and Execution at the KPK, Asep Guntur Rahayu, disclosed that the instruction to return funds emerged in July 2024, when parliamentary scrutiny of hajj quota irregularities intensified.
Asep explained that Gus Alex instructed his subordinates at the Subdivision Head level to return funds that had been collected from associations or special hajj operators. This step is strongly suspected to be a systematic attempt to prevent the fraudulent practices from being detected by law enforcement.
The funds were returned directly to the associations to avoid direct contact with pilgrims, thereby minimising the risk of public unrest. However, this attempt at cover-up was nonetheless detected by the anti-corruption commission’s investigative team.
Despite the mass refund effort, the KPK discovered that not all collected funds were returned to their original sources. Some funds are believed to have been used to meet the personal needs of former Religious Affairs Minister Yaqut Cholil Qoumas.
“Some of the fee money was still being retained and used for YCQ’s personal interests,” stated Asep at the KPK’s Red and White Building in South Jakarta on Thursday, 12 March.
The KPK has formally named Yaqut Cholil Qoumas and Isfan Abidal Aziz as suspects in the alleged corruption case involving the administration and distribution of hajj quotas. Both are suspected of responsibility for the manipulation of an additional 20,000 pilgrim quota allocation.
According to regulations, the additional quota should have been allocated 92 per cent for regular hajj and 8 per cent for special hajj. However, the suspects instead divided it equally at 50 per cent each, causing losses for those waiting in the regular hajj queue.
To date, investigators have questioned various Religious Affairs Ministry officials and travel service operators, including preacher Khalid Basalamah, to strengthen evidence before the case proceeds to court.