Hajj Ticket Auction Proposal, DPR Member: Do Not Sacrifice Justice for Speed

Jakarta, VIVA – Member of DPR RI Commission VIII, Atalia Praratya, has spoken out regarding the Ministry of Religious Affairs’ proposal on ticket auctions aimed at reducing the waiting queue for Hajj pilgrims. Atalia stated that the idea is considered highly premature. The reason is that it ignores aspects of social justice and has the potential to destroy the Hajj financial governance that has been running well so far. “We all agree that waiting nearly three decades is too long a time. However, the solution must not arise from haste that actually creates bigger new problems. Returning the Hajj system to a ticket auction mechanism or ‘speed race’ like before 2017 is a major setback for Hajj governance reform in Indonesia,” said Atalia in her statement on Friday, 10 April 2026. According to Atalia, Hajj worship is a call of the soul, not a clicking race. If a ticket auction system is implemented, those who will win are people with super-fast devices, the best internet connection, and instant financial capability. “What about mothers in the village who have been saving for 20 years? What about our grandfathers and grandmothers who are tech-illiterate? They will be marginalised,” Atalia emphasised. Atalia explained that the current queuing system allows the initial deposit funds of pilgrims (Rp 25 million) to be managed productively by the Hajj Financial Management Agency (BPKH). The benefits from this management have been used to subsidise Hajj costs, thus keeping the Hajj Organisational Cost (BPIH) low. “If the queuing system is abolished and returns to a full lump-sum deposit system, the Hajj funds reaching hundreds of trillions will dry up. Who will subsidise the pilgrims? Will Hajj costs rise drastically?” said Atalia. To address system gaming with the ticket auction scheme and to tackle the Hajj queue, Atalia suggested that the government should seriously implement a national single database synchronised between the Ministry of Religious Affairs and BPKH. With accurate data, we can map how many pilgrims are truly eligible (meeting the istithaah requirements) each year. “Focus on the efficiency of dispatching and infrastructure development there, do not change the upstream system which would instead become chaotic,” said Atalia.