JEDDAH, 1 March — The leader of the 43-member Philippine Haj mission said last night that the stipulation of minimum space for pilgrims in the Haj camp was strictly adhered to.
“We were aware of the three square meter per pilgrim stipulation and were even reminded by the Ministry of Haj and Moassassa about it, so how could we violate it,” Habib Mujahab A. Hashim, leader of the Haj goodwill mission and undersecretary and executive director of the office on Muslim affairs in the office of the Philippine president, told Arab News last night.
He was commenting on a report in a section of the Philippine press, which alleged that Philippine pilgrims were provided with less than the stipulated three-square meter space per head in the camp.
Hashim who accompanied by the delegation, attended the traditional Haj dinner hosted by Consul General Kadatuan P. Usop at the consulate, said: “We’ve strictly adhered to the space stipulation despite our financial problems. After all, our pilgrims are all guests of Allah and our effort all along has been to make their Haj as comfortable as possible.”
Hashim said in all 3,040 pilgrims from his country performed the Haj this time.
The number includes the mission’s 43-members who were guests of the Kingdom.
Asked whether there was a drop in the number of pilgrims this time, he said it was about the same as last year but it was far less compared to some previous years when up to 6,000 pilgrims performed the Haj.
Hashim, also the personal envoy of President Gloria Arroyo, said he performed the Haj regularly between 1981 and 1992 when he worked with Nur Misuari, former governor of the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARRM).
Misuari, accused of armed rebellion, is currently in jail pending investigation.
He thanked the Kingdom for extensive arrangements made for pilgrims and said: “There’ve been vast improvement in facilities and services for the mammoth congregation of pilgrims of all races and cultures.”
He hoped that as the country’s economy recovered more pilgrims would come from his country in the future to perform Haj.
Top ranking Philippine government officials, such as Sulu Congressman Hussein Amin, ARMM Vice Governor Dr. Mahid Mutilan, Commission on Higher Education Commissioner Roqaiya Maglangit, Southern Philippines Development Authority Administrator Zamzamin Ampatuan, Basilan State College President Dr. Luningning Omar and a number of regional directors of various government offices were part of the mission.
Usop in his welcome address said the reception was a thanksgiving event for the successful Haj of his compatriots.
He hoped Hashim would bring some more reforms to further streamline and systematize future Haj preparation at home as his office was the main government agency in charge of Haj activities.
For his part, Usop referred to the great improvement in the annual pilgrimage arrangements and hoped that his country’s Haj operations could now be computerized to minimize difficulties for pilgrims. “The consulate has no Haj section or attaché hence its personnel have been mobilized to handle the seasonal activity,” he added.