57 cases involving 'umrah' offences recorded since 2012

A total 57 cases involving offences related to 'umrah' (minor haj) packages were recorded nationwide with compound totaling RM249,000 from 2012 until April.

Deputy Minister of Tourism and Culture Datuk Mas Ermieyati Samsudin said the licence of 11 tour companies were withdrawn while the licence of an outbound company was also withdrawn.

She said the Domestic Trade, Cooperative and Consumerism Ministry via the Tribunal for Consumer Claims had also filed 3,400 cases with claims worth RM20.77 million over the same period.

"The police recorded 216 cheating cases involving 'umrah' packages with losses of RM9.1 million in the same period.

"All the cases involved the failure of tour agencies to obtain 'umrah' visas, flight tickets, cancellation or postponement of 'umrah' packages and flouting of the terms and conditions of 'umrah' packages."

Mas Ermieyati said this after the 2016 Umrah/Tour Cheating Awareness and Consumerism Rights Campaign Programme here, today.

In another development, she said the ministry aspires to expand the 'kampung stay' concept nationwide to provide comfort for foreign tourists.