Indonesia to promote haj savings
Indonesia to promote haj savings
JAKARTA (JP): The government will soon start a savings program to assist low-income Moslems wanting to make the haj pilgrimage to Mecca.
Minister of Religious Affairs Tarmizi Taher said upon his arrival from Mecca that the government will appoint state-owned banks to handle the savings.
"Hopefully, the haj savings program can begin next year," Tarmizi, who led this year's pilgrimage, told reporters at the Halim Perdanakusuma airport.
The haj pilgrimage is one of the five tenets of Islam required for every Moslem who, if he or she is physically and financially able, must make the trip at least once in a life time.
The Ministry of Religious Affairs coordinates the arrangements for the pilgrimage, including transportation, accommodations and logistics.
Tarmizi said low-income Moslems who want to make the haj pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia are encouraged to take part in the savings program.
The cost for performing the pilgrimage increases every year. This year's pilgrimage cost is Rp 7,010 million (US$3,139), up from Rp 6.9 million last year.
Despite the high cost, the number of Indonesians going to Mecca rises every year. This year, the number reached a record high of 197,000.
The haj savings program was proposed by Indonesian Haj Brotherhood (IPHI) organization last year. It was inspired by the Malaysian Haj Savings Institute.
The funds collected from prospective pilgrims will be invested by the banks. Any profit earned will be added to a customer's account over a period of years until there is enough to go to Mecca.
Tarmizi said that only state-owned banks that will be allowed to handle the savings program for "security reasons."
"You can imagine what could happen if a private bank handling the funds went bankrupt?," he said.
Tarmizi also said that the ministry will take stern actions against any state-owned bank that manipulated the data for this year's haj pilgrimage.
"I will coordinate the actions with the Minister of Finance," he said.
He said that the Ministry of Religious Affairs had discovered several cases of manipulation, including one involving several state-owned banks.
He said that one state-owned bank manipulated the data of hundreds of their customers to allow those on the waiting list to go at the expense of others who had long confirmed their departure.
He did not name the banks but said they had intentionally altered records of the customers' haj fee payment dates so they appeared to have been made prior to the official deadline of Feb. 6.
The state-owned banks authorized to receive haj fees are Bank Negara Indonesia, Bank Rakyat Indonesia, Bank Exim, Bank Dagang Negara, and Bank Bumi Daya.
Tarmizi said the ministry will be strict about the number of Indonesian haj pilgrims next year. The Saudi government has set the quota at 0.1 percent of a country's Moslem population.
"We will close the haj pilgrimage application when the number has reached the quota set by the Saudi authorities," he said.
The minister said that some 19,000 Indonesian haj pilgrims had returned as of yesterday.
The ministry said yesterday that the number of Indonesian pilgrims that died during the pilgrimage had reached 269 as of yesterday afternoon. (imn)