Portal's executive advisor: Modern electronic devices at airports detected 25 forged barcodes from a company whose license had been revoked
All companies and programs are registered on the portal, and citizens' failure to inquire made them easy prey for fraud
Ahmed Ibrahim, head of the Religious Tourism Committee at the Egyptian Chamber of Tourism Companies and executive advisor and official spokesman for the Egyptian Umrah Portal, stated that 120,000 Umrah visas have been issued so far since the portal was launched on November 17, all processed through the tourism companies registered on it in accordance with the Prime Minister's decree, and that the first Umrah trips departed on November 25, adding that all pilgrims obtained the barcode required by the portal in order to be able to travel.
Ibrahim affirmed that work at all airports and ports is proceeding with great discipline and unprecedented ease and smoothness, which has led to an orderly season, the elimination of shortcomings and the protection of pilgrims' rights and interests as well as the interests of tourism companies, all of which are the main goals behind establishing the portal, praising the great cooperation and high-level coordination among all the authorities involved.
In a related context, Ibrahim revealed an incident involving a number of pilgrims, in which 25 citizens went to travel holding barcodes they had obtained from a tourism company, but it turned out that the barcodes were forged and had not been issued by the Egyptian Umrah Portal, which was discovered by Passports Authority officers through the modern electronic devices they use, which are directly linked to the Umrah portal.
He added that the incident was immediately investigated, and it emerged that the company that committed this crime had its license revoked last year and had been struck off the list of tourism companies and the Chamber's records, but its name was exploited to defraud citizens. He explained that this company is not registered on the Egyptian Umrah Portal and has no presence in the sector, and that whoever defrauded citizens in its name obtained virtual Umrah visas but did not register them on the portal, because this is reserved only for tourism companies, so he forged the barcodes, which was discovered at the airport, noting that the Public Prosecution has been notified to investigate the accused.
He pointed out that this incident confirms the portal's success in bringing discipline and order to the Umrah market and preventing any manipulation of those wishing to perform Umrah, and stressed the need for citizens to check on companies and log on to the new portal to make sure the company they will travel with is registered on it, and to refuse to travel with any company not registered on the portal.
He noted that all companies permitted to organize Umrah are registered on the portal, and all Umrah programs are registered with their prices, details and timings, pointing out that even before the portal was launched, the Chamber organized an extensive media campaign to raise awareness of the importance of the new portal and how to use it, which had the greatest impact in reducing problems, and that this campaign will continue.
