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Haj cost debate continues as lawmakers take issue over hotel, catering costs
Despite plans to announce the new haj pilgrimage cost on Monday, discussions between the House of Representatives Commission VIII overseeing religious affairs and officials from the Religious Affairs Ministry have turned heated as lawmakers remain unsatisfied over the hotel and catering costs proposed by the ministry.
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Worshippers circle the Kaaba and pray at the Grand Mosque as Saudi Arabia welcomes back pilgrims for the 2022 haj season, after the kingdom had barred foreign travelers for two years because of the COVID-19 pandemic, in the holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia, on July 1, 2022. (Reuters/Mohammed Salem)
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espite plans to announce the new haj cost on Monday, discussions between the House of Representatives Commission VIII overseeing religious affairs and officials from the Religious Affairs Ministry have turned heated as lawmakers remain unsatisfied over the hotel and catering costs proposed by the ministry.
“We apologize to the pilgrims, as we still haven’t reached a decision on how much the haj is going [to cost] for the pilgrims and the subsidies the government is going to provide,” Commission VIII deputy chairman Marwan Dasopang said after the meeting was adjourned on Monday.
The National Awakening Party (PKB) lawmaker added that the discussion would continue on Tuesday, with the House hoping that they could settle the debate over several items within the haj costs. As the discussion extended past 7 p.m., legislators were still calling out the ministry on the hotel and catering costs, which they deemed too high.
“It’s fine if the ministry wants to set the cost as it is, but we at the Gerindra Party want nothing to do with it. [...] Rest assured that we’ll conduct an investigation [on the hotel and catering costs] in Saudi Arabia to check the actual prices,” Commission VIII member Abdul Wachid from Gerindra said during the meeting.
Despite the ensuing deadlock, the House and the ministry initially managed to reach an agreement to set the haj cost for Indonesian pilgrims this year at Rp 49 million (US$3,228.78), down from the original proposal of Rp 69 million. While the overall cost of haj remains the same at around Rp 98 million, the ministry plans on halving the subsidies given to pilgrims in 2023 after having to foot 60 percent of the haj cost in the previous year.
“We think this is the most logical way to maintain the sustainability of the Haj Fund Management Agency [BPKH]. So we plan on cutting [the subsidies] to only 30 percent, with pilgrims covering the remaining 70 percent,” said Religious Affairs Minister Yaqut Cholil Qoumas while meeting with the House in mid-January.
Read also: Government looks to nearly double the price of this year's haj
