KUALA LUMPUR – Three leading travel agencies offering umrah packages to Malaysians have objected to the government’s abrupt travel suspension effective January 8 and want the decision reversed.
The agencies are Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (Matta), Association of Bumiputera Tourism Operators of Malaysia (Bumitra) and Umrah and Hajj Travel Agencies’ Association (Papuh).
In a joint press conference today, Bumitra honorary secretary-general Ab Rahman Mohd Ali said the decision to temporarily suspend umrah would result in huge financial ramifications to the pilgrims in particular.
This, he said, especially concerns those who have already made payments and bookings through the tour agents.
“The high cancellation cost will be incurred by the pilgrims, as payments have already been made by the agencies to the respective service providers for accommodation and flight.”
He said due to booking cancellations, pilgrims could lose as much as 80% of the overall cost of their umrah packages, which he said starts at RM6,900.
He added that even if affected individuals want to make rebookings, there will be additional costs, on top of having to wait for the refund process to reclaim their losses.
Overall, Ab Rahman estimated losses incurred by the pilgrims for the first quarter of 2022 would amount to RM210 million.
“Affected parties such as tour agencies, airline companies, hoteliers and transport operators are all unprepared for the cancellation and rebooking process, as it involves complicated procedures.”
To aggravate the situation for tour agents, Ab Rahman said many still have to deal with claims filed by umrah pilgrims through tribunal or civil court for cancellations made between 2020 and 2021, due to the travel ban brought by the pandemic.
“We urge the government to withdraw the umrah suspension and to give a minimum notice of at least one month to make the necessary arrangements so pilgrims won’t have to bear the huge cost.”
If the government persists with the decision, he said any cost involving Malaysians should then be borne by the federal administration, including flight and hotel cancellations.
Earlier today, Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin announced that Malaysia will temporarily suspend the umrah pilgrimage starting January 8 following more Covid-19 clusters involving pilgrims.
He added that there will be no trips for umrah pilgrimage until a later date, and that the booking of new flight tickets for such trips has been postponed, effective today.
“Pilgrims leaving for the Holy Land on January 1 to 7 will be allowed to continue with their journey. However, they have to undergo quarantine at quarantine stations or hotels that have been identified upon returning.”
According to him, of the 11,108 pilgrims returning from umrah between October 13 and December 30, 1,306 pilgrims had tested positive, involving nine clusters.
Khairy said five of these clusters involved index cases with the more transmissible Omicron variant, one presumptive Omicron cluster, and three non-Omicron ones.
Impose tighter SOPs instead
Papuh president Datuk Seri Razali Mohd Sham said rather than outright suspending the minor pilgrimage, the government could instead allow umrah to go on with tighter standard operating procedures.
He said this could include mandatory quarantine in government centres, with the cost then absorbed by the returning pilgrims.
“I think they won’t have any issue paying RM1,000 plus for quarantine instead of losing more than RM6,000. Give us a month to prove that the situation can be controlled.
“If after this period we fail, then you can reconsider suspending. But I urge Khairy to only use the travel suspension as a final option.”
Meanwhile, Matta Umrah vice-president Mohd Azri Abd Razak said the Health Ministry was being unprofessional when it made a sudden announcement to suspend umrah, as it involves many stakeholders.
He also questioned why such a drastic action is being taken against umrah travellers, but not against others heading to other destinations.
“If we look at it, the Omicron variant is not as dangerous as Delta. And Omicron was not first detected in Saudi Arabia. So why is the government barring Muslims from performing their minor pilgrimage?
“This is our right as Malaysians. We are free to perform umrah. If it is true that the Omicron variant is dangerous, then why doesn’t the government ban travelling to all destinations?” – The Vibes, January 1, 2022
