Manage Large Budgets, the Implementation of Hajj Continues to Be Shadowed by the Potential for Corruption

JAKARTA - The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has named former Minister of Religion Yaqut Cholil Qoumas as a suspect in the alleged corruption of the 2023-2024 Hajj quota.

In addition to Yaqut, there is a former special staff of Ishfah Abidal Aziz alias Gus Alex who was charged with Articles 2 and 3 of Law Number 20 of 2001 concerning Corruption Crimes (Tipikor).

"Yes, there has been a determination of suspects in the investigation of the Hajj quota case," said KPK spokesman Budi Prasetyo to reporters, Friday (09/01/2026).

This is the third time that the Ministry of Religion has been involved in corruption related to the implementation of the hajj. Researcher at the Center for Anti-Corruption Studies at Gadjah Mada University (Pukat UGM) Zaenur Rohman said that the shadow of corruption in the implementation of the hajj occurred because it involved a large amount of budget.

Previously, the KPK issued a letter of prevention of departure abroad to Yaqut Cholil Qoumas, in line with the case of alleged corruption in the haj quota which has risen to the level of investigation.

The case of alleged corruption in the haj quota began to emerge since mid-2025, related to the use of regular and special haj quotas. Referring to the Law on the Implementation of the Hajj and Umrah, the haj quota is allocated for regular haj 92 percent and 8 percent for special haj.

In the 2024 Hajj quota, the Saudi Arabian government provided an additional 20,000 quota seats after negotiating with the then president, Joko Widodo. The additional quota was given because the waiting period for regular Hajj pilgrims reached decades.

If you refer to the rules, 18,400 additional seats should be allocated for regular hajj and 600 for special hajj. However, at that time the Ministry of Religion divided 10,000 seats equally for regular hajj and another 10,000 for special hajj. The division was approved through the Decree of the Minister of Religion 130/2024.

According to the KPK's estimates, this alleged corruption in the haj quota could cause state losses of up to Rp. 1 trillion. The initial calculation was obtained from the potential loss of state revenue due to reduced regular haj quotas. There is also the potential for private sector revenue to be lost due to changes in additional seat quotas.

This is not the first time a corruption case has occurred at the Ministry of Religion. Since the reform era, the Ministry of Religion, which is responsible for the implementation of the hajj in Indonesia, has always been under the shadow of corruption. Previously, two Ministers of Religion had been caught up in corruption.

First, the case of corruption of perpetual funds of the people and funds for the organization of the 2001-2004 Hajj with the suspect Said Agil Husin Al Munawar. During his tenure as minister, Said Agil is said to have received Rp4.5 billion. He was also sentenced to five years in prison in February 2006.

Then there was the corruption case involving the haj and operational funds of the minister (DOM) with the suspect Suryadharma Ali, Minister of Religion for the period 2009-2014. The KPK named him a suspect and sentenced him to six years.

Pukat UGM researcher Zaenur Rohman said that the shadow of corruption behind the implementation of the hajj does not necessarily relate to normal or religious values. He said that as a program involving large amounts of budget, the hajj has the consequence of being diverted.

In addition, the largest potential for corruption in the implementation of the hajj is in the procurement of goods and services. Starting from catering, transportation, health equipment, and accommodation. The procurement of goods and services sector is prone to kickback and mark up practices.

The potential for corruption in the implementation of the hajj is also increasing because it occurs abroad and involves outside parties.

"Well, then, the procurement in large amounts, the procurement package in large numbers, is carried out abroad, in relation to other parties, this risk of corruption becomes higher," said Zaenur.

Indonesian Corruption Watch (ICW) researcher Wana Alamsyah said that supervision at the Ministry of Religion was only carried out by the inspector general, although the budget for managing the hajj had a fantastic nominal.

Wana said that supervision that only relies on the inspector general was not enough, because institutionally they were under the minister. Previously, the ministry was also supervised by the ministry, but was disbanded by the government.

"The role of the inspectorate in carrying out supervisory functions is not optimal because of the unbalanced power relationship. The corruption prevention system in the Ministry of Religion does not run in a complete manner. This encourages institutional failure to prevent corruption," said Wana.

The Ministry of Religion is one of the ministries and state institutions with a jumbo budget. According to a number of sources, the Ministry of Religion obtained a 2026 budget of Rp. 88.8 trillion. This figure is up from last year, which was Rp. 66.2 trillion. Even before budget efficiency, the Ministry of Religion managed funds of Rp. 78 trillion in 2024.

The Ministry of Religion occupies the sixth position among ministries or agencies with a jumbo budget, below the National Nutrition Agency (Rp268 trillion), the Ministry of Defense (Rp187.1 trillion), the National Police (Rp146 trillion), the Ministry of Public Works (Rp118.5 trillion), and the Ministry of Health (Rp114 trillion).

With a very large budget, ICW said the potential for corruption in the Ministry of Religion was very open, not only related to the hajj quota. Throughout 2019-2023, there were nine corruption cases involving the Ministry of Religion.

"Regarding the procurement of goods and services, the distribution of operational assistance for madrasah, and the management of the hajj," he said.