Government Has Extended, 696 Prospective Hajj Pilgrims From Riau Have Not Paid Travel Costs

Hajj pilgrims from Riau Province. (ANTARA/HO-Humas Riau Ministry of Religion Office)

PEKANBARU - A total of 696 people out of a total of 5,047 Hajj candidates from Riau Province who are scheduled to leave for the Holy Land from 2023 to May 5 have not paid the cost of the pilgrimage. Head of the Regional Office of the Ministry of Religion of Riau Province, Mahyudin, appealed to prospective hajj pilgrims who have not paid Bipih to immediately settle the payment. The government has extended the deadline for payment of the cost of Hajj or Bipih trips from May 5 to May 12, 2023. Pilgrims from Riau will be dispatched to the Holy Land through the Batam Embarkation area. The cost of worship trips for members of the congregation departing from the Batam Embarkation according to the government's provisions is a total of Rp. 87,667,245.26. The costs that must be paid by each prospective hajj candidate after deducting the value of the benefits of the hajj funds are Rp. 47,429,308.26 and the initial deposit funds are Rp. 25,000,000 worth Rp. 22,429,308.26. Meanwhile, prospective hajj pilgrims who have paid their Hajj fees in 2020 but are delayed from leaving are asked to report to the bank receiving Hajj funds and the Regency/City Ministry of Religion Office. Mahyudin said that the pilgrims from Riau in 1444 Hijri/2023 AD included 13 full flying groups (cluters) and one combined group. "There are additional clusters from the original 11 full clusters and one combined batch. This is because there is a reduction in the number of seats (seats) on the plane that will transport pilgrims to Saudi Arabia, which was initially 450 seats to 374 seats," he said in Pekanbaru, Antara, Sunday, May 7. Pilgrims of Hajj candidates are scheduled to enter the Riau Hajj Dormitory on May 23, 2023 and begin to be flown to Saudi Arabia via Hang Nadim Batam Airport on May 24, 2023.

"Riau pilgrims entering the first wave will depart from Batam Embarkation to Medina on May 24, 2023," said Mahyudin.