Harap's wife, former Minister of Foreign Affairs Yaqut Cholil Qoumas, can return home: Pray on this Good Day

The wife of former Minister of Religion Yaqut Cholil Qoumas, Eny Retno

JAKARTA - The wife of former Minister of Religion Yaqut Cholil Qoumas, Eny Retno, hopes that her husband, who is a suspect in the corruption case for determining quotas and the implementation of the 2023-2024 hajj, can return home soon.

Eny conveyed this hope after visiting Yaqut at the KPK Red and White Branch Detention Center during the Eid al-Adha 1447 Hijriah, Wednesday, May 27. He asked the public to pray for his husband.

"The hope is, yes, to go home, yes, everyone also hopes that abah can go home. Hopefully, pray, yes, hopefully on this good day will bring good things for our family," said Eny to reporters around the KPK Red and White building, Kuningan Persada, South Jakarta.

Eny said that he had talked to Yaqut at the KPK Detention Center. He brought his son who was said to be on school holidays.

During this visit, Eny brought fried tempeh and several other foods, including cookies for Yaqut. "If the food is cooked, it can't last long, yes," he said.

Meanwhile, when asked about the case that ensnared her husband, Eny did not want to say much. He claimed that Yaqut did not talk much about the alleged corruption of the haj quota.

"Abah never told us about the case, yes. I am committed to that, let him and the lawyers tell me," he explained.

"If it's me, the children, it must be talking about children, about Mother, that's it. So bring it to the things that strengthen him, because as strong as Abah will also feel torn from what he loves, it's painful, that's it."

As previously reported, the KPK named Yaqut Cholil Qoumas as the former Minister of Religion along with his staff, specifically Ishfah Abidal Azis alias Gus Alex as a suspect in the alleged corruption in determining the quota and the implementation of the 2023-2024 Hajj pilgrimage at the Ministry of Religion.

The alleged corruption began with the granting of 20,000 additional Hajj quotas from the Saudi Arabian government to Indonesia in 2023-2024. Based on Law Number 8 of 2019 concerning the Implementation of the Hajj and Umrah and the results of the agreement of the Panja Meeting of Commission VIII of the Indonesian House of Representatives, special Hajj quotas should be set at 8 percent of the total quota, while the remaining 92 percent is intended for regular Hajj.

However, Yaqut as the Minister of Religion at that time allegedly unilaterally changed its composition. Using the maneuver of issuing the Minister of Religion Decree (KMA) which was not disseminated transparently, Yaqut then divided the additional Hajj quota into a scheme of 50 percent for regular Hajj and 50 percent for special Hajj.

Meanwhile, Ishfah Abidal Aziz implemented the policy by easing the rules for special hajj pilgrims.

He arranged for the filling of the remaining special hajj quota to be handed over to the proposed Special Hajj Service (PIHK) or travel agents. In fact, there should be an order of departure according to the national order number according to the law.

In return for these accelerated facilities, Gus Alex instructed his subordinates to collect illegal levies or fees from travel parties, which were ultimately charged to prospective special pilgrims. In 2023, the amount of fees set at USD5,000 or around Rp84.4 million per pilgrim.

Meanwhile, in the 2024 Hajj, the collection rate was agreed at least USD2,000 to USD2,500 per pilgrim.

The billions of rupiah from the collection of fees are suspected to have flowed into the pockets of Gus Yaqut, Gus Alex, and a number of other officials in the Ministry of Religion.

Then there is an allegation that some of the funds were deliberately prepared and used to condition the Special Hajj Committee (Pansus) which was formed by the DPR RI in mid-2024. However, a refusal was given so that no transfer by intermediaries would occur.

As a result of the actions of the two, the state is said to have lost up to IDR 622 billion. They were then suspected of violating Article 2 (1) and or Article 3 of Law Number 31 of 1999 concerning the Eradication of Corruption as amended by Law Number 20 of 2001 jo Article 55 paragraph (1) of the Criminal Code.