Jail those involved in Haj, Umrah package scams - MATTA

The government has been urged to take stern action, including imposing jail sentence on individuals behind the syndicates involved in Haj and Umrah package scams.

Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA) president, Hamzah Rahmat said drastic action was necessary as the problem was worrying.

"In such cheating cases, don't just fine them, as everybody can pay the fine and be free. If there are two or three cases where the individuals are sentenced to jail, God willing this can be a deterrent," he added.

Hamzah also reminded would-be pilgrims to deal only with licensed travel agencies to protect themselves from being cheated.

"Don't just go for cheap packages, as that's where they tend to get cheated," he said, following the Umrah package scams reported by the media recently.

In this regard, Hamzah said at the MATTA fair this time, it had included the Umrah pavilion to enable Muslims to obtain genuine Umrah packages.

He said the 1M Pavilion was specially for travel agents offering Haj and Umrah packages.

"Every travel agency participating in the MATTA fair is definitely licenced by the Tourism Ministry. But If they still want to cheat, the ministry will know what to do," he added.