MUI Fatwa Prohibits Hajj Deposit Investment For Other Congregants, BPKH Waits For Government-DPR Agreement

Member Of The BPKH Implementing Agency For Finance Amri Yusuf

JAKARTA - The Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) issued an illicit fatwa on the use of the initial deposit investment proceeds for the travel costs of a pilgrim (BIPIH) to finance the implementation of the Hajj pilgrimage for other pilgrims.

Responding to this, the Hajj Financial Management Agency (BPKH) is still waiting for an agreement between the government and the DPR to formulate a hajj fee scheme that implements the MUI fatwa.

Member of the BPKH Implementing Agency for Finance Amri Yusuf explained, referring to Article 37 Paragraph 5 of Government Regulation Number 5 of 2018, the distribution of proportions of use of value benefits or the results of initial deposit investment must obtain DPR approval.

"BPKH will continue to comply with laws and regulations stating that hajj funds are managed by sharia principles in accordance with Article 2 of Law Number 34 of 2014," Amri said in Jakarta, Thursday, August 1.

"We invite all parties to carefully study the MUI fatwa in order to obtain a comprehensive understanding to prevent multiple interpretations from occurring," he continued.

Amri said, while waiting for the government-DPR agreement, BPKH continued to prioritize the principles of transparency and accountability, as well as not burdensome for pilgrims who will depart in 2025 and beyond.

"BPKH is designing a scheme to reduce the proportion of subsidies to value benefits in BPIH gradually, and provide a greater percentage of value benefits for the waiting congregation to achieve a self-financing scheme," Amri explained.

For information, the haram fatwa is contained in the MUI Fatwa Number 09/Ijatima Ulama/VIII/2024 concerning the Law Utilizing the Investment Results of the Initial Bipiah Bipiah for Hajj Pilgrims to Finance the Implementation of Hajj for Other Congregants.

"The law of utilizing the results of the BIPIH initial deposit investment for prospective pilgrims to finance the implementation of other pilgrims' Hajj is haram," wrote the MUI fatwa.

Then, MUI stated that the management of Hajj finance used investment results from BIPIH's initial deposit of prospective pilgrims to finance the implementation of other guilty pilgrims' pilgrimages.

MUI also recommends that BPKH improve Hajj financial governance by making this Ijtima's decision a guide.

MUI also recommends that the president and the DPR make improvements to the provisions of the legislation to guarantee and protect the rights of prospective pilgrims who have paid Hajj funds deposits.

The government and the DPR are also asked to ensure the security of funds belonging to the congregation, guarantee a sense of justice for the congregation and avoid acts of injustice, either because of management malpractice or because of inappropriate regulations.