MAXIMUM Penalty for Umrah SCAM, says MATTA

Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA) President Datuk Hj Hamzah Rahmat is deeply saddened with yet another report of Umrah scam after paying for cheap packages.

Hamzah said “There is no such thing as cheap Umrah packages and those who are led to believe that they can get anything cheaper than the minimum RM4,900 for a basic package would discover later, but then it will be already too late.”

“For example, those offered RM3,000 package would be thinking that they are saving RM1,900 but may end up losing all RM3,000. If there are any interested benefactor who wish to subsidise Umrah packages, please step forward and work with MATTA, so that the pilgrims will receive such benefits with peace of mind.”

“It was reported that Terengganu police chief Datuk Rosli Ab Rahman said the Umrah scam had affected 4,800 potential pilgrims who were left stranded as a result.

I hope that the public will really learn a lesson this time and treat all cheap tour packages, particularly Umrah, with great suspicion.”

Hamzah repeated the call to the public to deal and buy only from registered travel agents licensed by the Ministry of Tourism and Culture and not with unlicensed companies or individuals.

“If evidence showed there was cheating, they should be charged and slapped with the maximum penalty, which is necessary to serve as strong deterrence to those taking advantage of the gullible public”, concluded Hamzah.