Travel agencies threaten of a mass withdrawal from framing the pilgrimage season
Algerian pilgrims
Travel agencies involved in organizing the coming pilgrimage, call upon the President Bouteflika, and Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal, to intervene in order to save the season from failure, following threats of collective withdrawal from framing pilgrims because of forcing them to lease hotels for the benefit of pilgrims after the lottery process, and obliging them to pay 5000 dinars for the benefit of the Office of Haj and Umrah.
Sources from the tourist agencies, described organizing the pilgrimage for the next season as anarchic, after they hoped to continue efforts to improve aspects of supervision, which started nearly two years ago by the National Office for the Hajj and Umrah, describing the decision of forcing them to lease hotels for pilgrims as an action that is contradictory with the book of conditions which was prepared by the office, claiming that the pilgrims who will be covered by the agencies are the ones who will win in the lottery, and it’s not about a tourism pilgrimage which takes over the agencies to do all procedures related to the pilgrimage, so the office is asked to rent buildings, and the task of agencies is framing only, for 5000 dinars for each pilgrim in exchange of services offered by these agencies.
Travel agencies threatened ti withdraw collectively from organizing the pilgrimage, and considered their participation in framing as a suicidal job, so they decided to “withdraw like heroes” – in the words of some agencies which refused to reveal their names – saying: “Obliging us to rent buildings on behalf of the office will cost heavy losses, because the customer is not guaranteed and renting Hotels will force them to pay 50% of the dues of total rent price, noting that the rental rooms for 250 pilgrims will not be less than 10.00.00.00 AD, while there are agencies which will ensure 500 pilgrims”, said the owner of tourist agency.
“We are not ready to pay billions for a customer believes that the pilgrimage is supported and its cost does not exceed 300.000 AD. These funds also require the need for the state intervention, to limit the role of agents only on the framing”.