The certainty regarding the increase in officer quota was confirmed by Qoumas after he held a meeting with Hajj and Umrah Minister of Saudi Arabia Tawfiq bin Fawzan Al-Rabiah in Jeddah.
"I also proposed (another) additional Hajj officer quota to maximize services. Hopefully, it can be approved by the Saudi Hajj minister," Qoumas noted in a statement issued by his ministry here on Monday.
According to the minister, the meeting discussed various preparations for the 2024 Hajj.
In addition to discussing the Hajj officer quota, the two ministers also discussed certainty regarding the placement plan of Indonesian Hajj pilgrims in Arafat, Muzdalifah, and Mina.
He assessed that certainty about the placement plan is important to anticipate overcrowding, considering that there are additional Hajj pilgrim quotas, including for Indonesia, which received an additional Hajj pilgrim quota of 20 thousand.
"I conveyed this to the Saudi Hajj minister, including proposing ease and service priority for disabled and elderly Hajj pilgrims in the 2024 Hajj season," Qoumas stated.
Qoumas further noted that his ministry is seeking policy support from the Hajj and Umrah Ministry of Saudi Arabia, so that the authorities only place pilgrims in tents that are in accordance with the placement plan while they are in Arafat and Mina.
This is aimed at preventing the recurrence of incidents of pilgrims occupying tents that are not in accordance with the placement plan.
"The Ministry of Religious Affairs also proposed that the formula for special Hajj services by a consortium of special Hajj travel companies and their associations could be reduced, from a minimum of two thousand pilgrims to one thousand pilgrims," he stated.
The other important issue that was discussed at the meeting is the certainty regarding approval of the delivery of additional Zamzam water.
"In general, the Hajj minister understood a number of proposals of the Religious Affairs Ministry," he remarked.
Meanwhile, regarding the delivery of additional Zamzam water, the Hajj and Umrah minister stated that it is still being discussed with the authorized party, according to Qoumas.
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Translator: Asep Firmansyah, Raka Adji
Editor: Arie Novarina
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