Yaqut Says Hajj Quota Issue Should Be Resolved Through Administrative Court
Former Religious Affairs Minister Yaqut Cholil Qoumas has said that the corruption case concerning hajj quota allocation, as alleged by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), could be resolved through the State Administrative Court (PTUN).
Yaqut made the statement after the reading of exceptions at the Jakarta Corruption Court on Tuesday (18/8).
He argued that if the hajj quota allocation policy was deemed problematic, the matter should not have been pursued through the Corruption Court.
“This should be about policy. It is the policy that ought to be challenged. If someone has committed corruption, a criminal act of corruption, then that is what should be processed,” he said.
On that occasion, he also maintained that he had never instructed his staff to commit corruption, trade quotas, or relax regulations in the implementation of the hajj pilgrimage.
“I never ordered my staff to commit corruption, trade quotas, or relax regulations. There was none of that. I never did that,” Yaqut said.
Yaqut also argued that the KPK prosecutors’ indictment was not careful or complete. Among other things, he said, the prosecutors had conflated ministerial policy with technical matters that should fall under the purview of the Directorate General.
“Ministerial policy has been mixed up with technical policy that should be the domain of the directorate general. It has been directed so that the policy becomes the minister’s fault, when it should not be so,” he said.
Yaqut was previously indicted for causing state losses of Rp622,090,207,166.41 (Rp622 billion) in the alleged corruption case involving additional hajj quotas for 2023–2024.
Public prosecutors from the Corruption Eradication Commission stated that the unlawful acts were carried out by Yaqut together with three other defendants.
They are Yaqut’s special staff member Ishfah Abidal Azis, also known as Gus Alex; Maktour Operations Director Ismail Adham; and Asrul Azis Taba, chairman of the Kesthuri Association and commissioner of PT Raudah Eksati Utama.