RIYADH, June 11 — Malaysian haj pilgrims are seen as more prepared and at ease in performing their umrah, said Lembaga Tabung Haji (TH) operations director, Ustaz Tengku Aziz Raja Abdullah.
He said the view was based on a post-mortem conducted by TH staff after several groups of pilgrims completed their first umrah pilgrimage on arrival in Makkah.
“Through the feedback received from the pilgrims, they did not encounter any major problems because they could perform the tawaf (ritual of circumambulating the Kaabah) at ease as there were not many people around.
This was following the regulation of the Saudi Arabian government which only allowed those needing to perform the minor haj to be there,” he said when met by reporters at TH headquarters at the Abraj Al Janadriyah building here.
Tengku Aziz said the pilgrims could understand the minor haj and haj rituals much better as generally they only voiced anxiety over minor issues which would not invalidate their worship.
In addition, he was confident that the courses organised by TH before the pilgrims departed for the Holy Land were one of the factors which assisted them in performing the minor haj as best as possible, other than the role of TH staff here who provided information from time to time.
Tengku Aziz said every delegation would be divided into several groups comprising 100 pilgrims under the guidance of two coaches and several staff from the respective hostels.
Meanwhile, Malaysian Haj delegation head Datuk Seri Syed Saleh Syed Abdul Rahman said TH provides continuous training programmes to would-be-haj pilgrims before their departure to the Holy Land.
He said various training mediums including online haj courses had also been provided to ensure the pilgrims always received guidance not only on worship but also on looking after their health and cleanliness, especially when in Arafah and Mina.
“Alhamdulillah, during the 2017 haj season, with the support and co-operation of South East Asia Muassasah, we have joined hands with the pilgrims in the campaign to maintain cleanliness in Arafah and Mina.
“This was extended to Makkah the following year,” he said at the taaruf (introduction) ceremony between the leadership line-up of Syarikat Tewafah Asia Tenggara (known as Muassasah Asia Tenggara previously) and the Malaysian haj delegation last night.
He hoped the management of the pilgrims this year would be better than previously with the close cooperation between Syarikat Tewafah Asia Tenggara and the Saudi Arabian government. — Bernama
