Check Former Minister Of Religion Yaqut Today, KPK Cecar For Additional Hajj Quota Arrangements From Saudi Arabia

JAKARTA - The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has examined former Religious Minister Yaqut Cholil Qoumas today. He was questioned regarding the different rules for distributing 20,000 additional hajj quotas obtained by Indonesia from the Saudi Arabian government in 2023-2024.

"Investigators are investigating the chronology of the additional quota which then through the minister's decision is to plot or distribute the special hajj quota and also the regular hajj quota," said KPK spokesman Budi Prasetyo to reporters at the KPK's Merah Putih building, Kuningan Persada, South Jakarta, Monday, September 1.

Investigators from Ishfah Abidal Aziz as the Chairman of the Nahdlatul Ulama (PBNU) Executive Board were also investigated. Yaqut's special staff is known to have also been investigated but were not included in the summons schedule.

Budi explained that the examination was not on schedule because he continued his previous request for information.

"Our assumption is that the person concerned knows about the chronology until then there is a decision (the distribution of the hajj quota, ed)," he said.

Meanwhile, Yaqut did not talk much after being questioned by investigators. He admitted that he was only being investigated regarding the information he had conveyed during the investigation stage.

"Only deepening the information I conveyed at the previous examination. So, there is an in-depth investigation," Yaqut told reporters.

From observations in the field, Yaqut came out at around 16.18 WIB. He was checked for almost seven hours.

Yaqut claimed to have received dozens of questions from investigators. When asked about the distribution of 20,000 additional hajj quotas from the troubled Saudi Arabian government, the former minister of the era of the 7th President of the Republic of Indonesia Joko Widodo (Jokowi) did not want to talk much.

"The material was asked by investigators. ... I conveyed information about the investigation related to what was asked at the first examination," he said.

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.

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 corrupt practice.

State losses in the corruption case of quota and Hajj for the period 2023-2024 are said to have reached more than IDR 1 trillion. This amount is still increasing because it is only the initial calculation of the KPK which continues to coordinate with the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK).

This case began with the provision of 20,000 additional Hajj quotas from the Saudi Arabian government for Indonesia to reduce queues for pilgrims.

However, recently the distribution turned out to be problematic because it was divided equally, namely 50 percent for regular Hajj and 50 percent for special Hajj.

In fact, based on the law, the distribution should be 92 percent for regular Hajj and 8 percent for special Hajj.