Faizel Patel – 12/01/2021
The South African Muslim Travel Operators Association (SAMTOA) says it will defend any legal action taken by the South African Hajj and Umrah Council (SAHUC) against travel operators who have failed to refund hujjaj for last years cancelled hajj.
In a statement, Samtoa says that most suppliers and hoteliers in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia have not yet refunded hujaaj funds and that none of the accredited hajj operators have any of the hujjaj’s money in their bank accounts.
Sahuc last week threatened to take legal action against hajj operators who failed to refund hujjaj for last year’s hajj saying they were in breach of the code of conduct and that they had until the 20th of February to ensure that hujjaj are refunded in full.
Samtoa says operators cannot refund hujjaj as they have not received the refunds from the Kingdom.
“We inform Hujaaj that our members will not be able to meet the 20 February 2021 deadline, and that SAHUC are well aware that their demand is unreasonable. It seems inevitable, as per the SAHUC press release that they are going to engage in legal action. SAMTOA will defend the integrity and good name of its members in any court of law.”
Compared to previous years in which millions performed hajj, last year only about 10,000 people, 70 percent foreigners residing in the Kingdom and 30 percent of Saudi’s were allowed to perform hajj under strict protocols following the spread of the Coronavirus across the globe.
0 Comments