Pilgrims Do Not Receive Welcome Refreshments, DPR Hajj Oversight Team Reprimands Madinah Daker

Abdul Wachid, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives’ Commission VIII and a member of the DPR Hajj Oversight Team, criticised the management of catering services for pilgrims who had just arrived at their lodgings. He said he had received direct complaints from pilgrims who did not receive welcome refreshments, which should serve as a relief after the long journey from the homeland. Wachid had previously admonished the Daerah Kerja (Daker) via WhatsApp regarding the incident. He asked for clarity on who is ultimately responsible for providing these initial refreshments. ‘Secondly, regarding the welcome refreshments, are these provided by the hotel or by the syarikah? Some pilgrims complained that they did not receive the welcome refreshments,’ Wachid said after a coordination meeting with the Head of the Madinah Work Area (Kadaker Madinah) on Monday (18 May).

The Hajj Oversight Team of the DPR RI urged improvements in coordination between the Daker, hotels, and syarikah so that pilgrims’ basic service rights, both in terms of worship timing and accommodation, are fulfilled to the maximum extent.

Additionally, he asked the Ministry of Hajj to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of obstacles to fulfilling Arbain worship. In the meeting, Wachid noted that the Hajj Working Committee had previously decided on a nine-day stay for pilgrims in Madinah. This policy is specifically designed to give pilgrims sufficient time to perform Arbain, i.e., forty consecutive obligatory prayers at Al-Masjid an-Nabawi. However, field reality shows that some pilgrims still fail to complete Arbain. ‘There are pilgrims who cannot perform Arbain because their arrival schedule does not align, for example due to flight delays, thus reducing their time in Madinah,’ Wachid said. He acknowledged that, in terms of Sharia and the guidelines of the Ministry of Religious Affairs, Arbain is Sunnah and not obligatory. Nevertheless, this tradition has become firmly attached and remains a principal spiritual target for the majority of Indonesian Hajj pilgrims. ‘For our pilgrims, Arbain is ingrained. Therefore, we in the DPR need direct input from the Kadaker dealing with field dynamics. In future, the implementation of this schedule must not be chaotic again,’ Wachid insisted.