TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Indonesia has received an added hajj quota by 52,200 slots from Saudi Arabia's government in 2017 and it cannot be added further, according to Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi. She added that obtaining extra hajj quotas through partnerships with other countries is not as easy as it sounds.
“It isn’t that simple because we would need to talk to Saudi Arabia first since they control the bookkeeping,” she said on Thursday, January 12, 2017.
Indonesia originally had 168,000 hajj quotas for 2017 but has now increased to 221,000 by the extra 52,200 slots. The increased quota was given by Saudi officials following a series of dealing attempts since 2015.
Technically, Indonesia could add more of its quota by requesting it to other countries. But that would be possible if the countries involved receive an excessive amount of hajj quota.
However, Retno said that President Jokowi has so far satisfied with the current quota. Therefore, she said that it will not necessarily be added further.
ISTMAN MP
