By Akram Medhat
Minister of Tourism Yehia Rashed affirmed that the tourist Hajj mission performed its role without the slightest shortcoming in serving the pilgrims, which had a positive impact on the success of the past Hajj season of 1438 AH, noting that it was in contact with them around the clock. This came yesterday at a meeting of the House of Representatives' Tourism and Aviation Committee to discuss the problems of the Hajj season.
Rashed revealed that the licenses of the two companies responsible for the problem of the House of Representatives' pilgrims have been revoked, and that the ministry will not be lenient in imposing deterrent penalties on any company that violated the Hajj regulations. He appealed to the House of Representatives to establish a legal umbrella under which special visas or individual visas are handled within a regulatory framework to ensure the safety of pilgrims and avoid a repeat of this problem in coming seasons.
For her part, Sahar Talaat Moustafa, head of the House of Representatives' Tourism Committee, praised the continuous efforts made by the tourist Hajj mission and its keenness to solve all problems and help pilgrims, commending the ministry's efforts in making the Hajj season a success.
In a related context, Mohamed Shaalan, first undersecretary of the Ministry of Tourism and head of the tourist Hajj mission, explained that the ministry is responsible for 36,000 visas out of Egypt's official quota of 78,000 visas. He reviewed the ministry's oversight role over tourism companies at all stages of the Hajj season, starting from setting the regulations, through inspecting accommodation, to continuous follow-up with pilgrims throughout the season through committees deployed from the moment the pilgrim departs until their return home.
Shaalan revealed that the mission received 134 complaints out of the total of 36,000 pilgrims, 34 of which were resolved through waivers, while the rest are under investigation. He explained that the main problem was overcrowding, especially in Mina, because the tent area is limited and the number of pilgrims increased this year after the restoration of the 20% that was distributed among Islamic countries after the Kingdom completed the expansion of the Grand Mosque in Mecca.
He pointed out that the problem raised this year concerned pilgrims of the House of Representatives and some other bodies who obtained special visas from outside the ministry's quota, in which case the ministry has no role in inspection or follow-up, since these visas follow a different Hajj track from tourist Hajj, and those bodies turned to the companies directly without referring to the ministry. Nevertheless, when tourism companies carry out individual visas, they are held accountable according to their direct contracts with them.
He continued: "The mission contacted the pilgrims who faced these problems and arranged their accommodation, and hosted some of them at its own expense on the instructions of the Minister of Tourism, in addition to responding around the clock to pilgrims' requests and complaints and working to resolve them."
Separately, Eman Samy, head of the Religious Tourism Committee at the Chamber of Tourism Companies, said that the Egyptian government should set the specifications and conditions it wants for pilgrims in its agreements with the Saudi Ministry of Hajj and Umrah, and that the numbers leaving Egypt should be determined accordingly, in a way that ensures the safety of pilgrims, the quality of the services provided to them and that they are not overcrowded in their accommodation.
MP Dr. Ibrahim Hamouda and MP Mohamed Abdel Maqsoud, deputy heads of the House's Tourism and Aviation Committee, along with another group of MPs, called for Hajj to be placed under a single umbrella, saying a legal formula must be found so that one body supervises all Egyptian pilgrims, with a single Hajj track through the Ministry of Tourism, and stressing that the tourist Hajj mission is the best organized.
