Allocating Hajj quota: MoRA advised to formulate permanent benchmark for HGOs

The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) team probing Haj scam has asked the Ministry of Religious Affair to formulate a permanent benchmark for Haj Group Organisation (HGOs) to check charging of extra money from pilgrims. An official source in FIA told Business Recorder that following the directives of Saudi government or Saudi Talamat, the Religious Affairs Ministry had started allocation of 50 percent Haj quota to HGOs since 2005.
"From 2005 to 2009, the Ministry had been allocating Haj quota to HGOs without following any rules and regulations, which paved the way for many HGOs to overcharge from pilgrims", he added. Source said that in 2010, the Religious Affairs Ministry had formulated a criterion for allocation of Haj quota under which an HGO, that had transported 1,000 pilgrims in the last five years, was allocated a quota of 300 pilgrims; an HGO that had sent 500 people for Haj, was given a quota of 250 pilgrims, while groups that had sent 300 pilgrims were allocated a quota of 200 pilgrims.
The Ministry chalked out the criterion but no proper benchmark was put in place as a result the HGOs charged extra money from innocent pilgrims by preparing an unrealistic break up of expenses, the source added. The official flayed the Ministry saying that it had failed to prepare any benchmark for HGOs, under which they could prepare their brake up before Haj. "Negligence on part of the Religious Affairs Ministry is the main reason behind charging extra money from pilgrims", he added.
The source said that FIA investigators had also advised the Ministry to improve their monitoring system by sending qualified officers to inspect Haj arrangements for pilgrims in Saudi Arabia, so that exploitation of pilgrims could be stopped. He said FIA team had also asked the Ministry to return the money deposited in Haj Compensation Fund (HCF) by HGOs as this was illegally charged from pilgrims by the HGOs.