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View all search resultsKPK bars ex-minister Yaqut from leaving country in probe into haj quota scandal
The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has imposed a travel ban on former religious affairs minister Yaqut Cholil Qoumas, as part of its investigation into alleged misallocation of last year’s haj quota.
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Former religious affairs minister Yaqut Cholil Qoumas walks toward an interview room at the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK)'s building on Aug. 7 in Central Jakarta. (Antara/Indrianto Eko Suwarso)
T
he Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has banned former religious affairs minister Yaqut Cholil Qoumas from leaving the country, as part of its investigation into alleged misallocation of last year’s haj quota.
The ban is effective for six months from Aug. 11.
Yaqut is not a suspect in the case. He showed up for questioning as a witness at the KPK headquarters in Central Jakarta last Thursday.
KPK spokesman Budi Prasetyo said that a similar ban is also in place on Yaqut’s former special staffer Ishfah Abidal Aziz and haj travel agency owner Fuad Hasan Masyhur.
“The travel ban is necessary as the presence of these individuals in Indonesia is crucial for the ongoing investigation [of the haj quota case],” Budi said on Tuesday, as quoted by Antara.
The case centers on the distribution of 20,000 additional haj slots granted by Saudi Arabia for Indonesia last year, following then-president Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s request to alleviate wait times for pilgrims registering through the most affordable government-subsidized regular haj plan, which is notorious for its long waiting period.
The ministry subsequently decided in a decree to divide the extra spots equally between the regular and special haj programs, with the latter being managed by travel agencies, even though the prevailing 2019 law on haj limits the special haj program to 8 percent of the country’s annual quota.
