KPK Suspects The Ministry Of Religion's Travel Lobby Association To Change Additional Hajj Quota Scheme

JAKARTA - The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) suspects that there is communication between the association of travel agents or travel agents with the Ministry of Religion (Kemenag) which leads to allegations of corruption in quotas and the implementation of Hajj in 2023-2024.

Acting (Plt) Deputy for Enforcement and Execution of the KPK Asep Guntur Rahayu said the association that oversees various travel agents contacted the Ministry of Religion after hearing that Indonesia received an additional 20,000 hajj quota from the Saudi Arabian government. This communication aims so that they can participate in managing the addition.

"So they are not alone, they are members of the travel association. There are two or three like that, I kind of forgot," Asep told reporters quoted on Wednesday, August 13.

"Well, then they contacted the Ministry of Religion to discuss, 'this is an additional quota,'. They think, this association thinks, thinks economically. This means how to get a bigger profit, that's it," he continued.

This association is then suspected of being involved with the Ministry of Religion so that the distribution of additional hajj quotas between regular and special is not shared properly. Because, Asep said, travel agents can only take care of special hajj.

"If only divided now (according to the rules, ed) 92 percent (for regular Hajj, ed) with 8 percent (special hajj, ed), they will only get 1,600 quotas, right. Well, the value will be smaller, that's it. Especially if 20 thousand of them are all used or used as regular quotas. They will not even get additional quotas or zonks, yes," he explained.

From this meeting, it was allegedly agreed to distribute the additional hajj quota from the Saudi Arabian government to 50 percent for regular quotas and 50 percent for special quotas.

This agreement then led to the issuance of the Decree of the Minister of Religion Number 130 of 2024 concerning additional hajj quotas. Thus, the KPK will trace the issuance process.

"Is this really bottom up or top down? Or did both meet at the same frequency? The one from the bottom wants it, the one from above also wants it to be met together, that's it. Well, we are digging it," said Asep, who is also the Director of KPK Investigation.

Previously reported, the KPK has issued a general investigation warrant (sprindik) for alleged corruption in the addition of quotas and the implementation of Hajj. This institution reasoned that the issuance was carried out so that they could make forced efforts.

"With this public sprindik, we are more free to collect evidence and also collect information so that it makes light of a case that we are currently handling," said Acting Deputy for Enforcement and Execution of the KPK Asep Guntur Rahayu at a press conference at the KPK's Merah Putih building, Kuningan Persada, South Jakarta, Saturday morning, August 9.

The general Sprindik uses Article 2 Paragraph 1 and/or Article 3 of Law Number 31 of 1999 concerning the Eradication of Criminal Acts of Corruption as amended by Law Number 20 of 2021 in conjunction with Article 55 paragraph 1 of the Criminal Code. This means that there are state losses that occur due to this rasuah practice.

The state losses in the corruption case of quotas and the implementation of Hajj for the 2023-2024 period are said to have reached more than IDR 1 trillion and could increase. This figure arises because the distribution of an additional 20,000 Hajj quota from the Saudi Arabian government is carried out inappropriately, namely 92 percent for regular Hajj and the rest or 8 percent for special Hajj.

This division repeatedly referred to by the KPK is actually regulated in Article 64 paragraph 2 of Law Number 8 of 2019 concerning the Implementation of Hajj and Umrah. However, the quota is actually divided by 50 percent for regular Hajj and 50 percent for special Hajj.