‘What on earth is happening?’ netizens ask Tabung Haji

Recent revelations of Tabung Haji's financial status is causing a stir online with many netizens voicing their shock and anger over it.

KUALA LUMPUR: Netizens have been questioning Bank Negara’s recent warning that Tabung Haji’s reserve levels are in the negative, with the most common question heard online being “What on earth is happening?”

“Tabung Haji, what on earth is happening?” asked one Twitter user, @ainazuhairi. “What’s up with Tabung Haji?” asked another user, @nhfza.

More cogent comments came from Twitter user @ezrinmn, who pointed out that his concern stemmed from him being one of the nation’s 8.8 million TH account holders.

“Aku sembang pasal kes Tabung Haji bukan sebab aku saje nak get into conversation. Aku antara 8.8milion pemilik akaun TH. #Pray4TabungHaji” he said. (My talking about the Tabung Haji case isn’t just because I want to get into the conversation. I’m one of the 8.8 million TH account holders.)

A report by The Malaysian Insider today revealed that Bank Negara governor Zeti Akhtar Aziz had told Tabung Haji chairman Abdul Azeez Abdul Rahim in a letter dated December 23 that the pilgrims’ fund has only 98 sen in assets for each ringgit in liability.

In a separate letter to Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Jamil Khir Baharom on the same date, also sighted by The Malaysian Insider, Zeti warned that Tabung Haji’s finances could have a financial impact on the government.

Columnist Karim Raslan said “millions of ordinary Malaysians deserve to know the truth” of the matter, and also echoed local debater Syed Saddiq’s tweet calling the mismanagement of Tabung Haji funds “unforgivable.”

“It’s worse than politicising Islam,” Syed Saddiq had railed in his tweet a few hours ago. “Pawning off an Islamic institution for the sake of political interests? Judge yourselves,” he said.

Another user was more vehement in her denigration of the authorities. “What the hell is going on,” said Twitter user @rayyyhanis. “Tabung Haji in red. Govt charging GST on rakyat and ask us to do 2 kerja while the MPs lavishly spend that money.”

Commenting on Azeez’s silence on the matter so far, user @LanaMichael opined that Azeez was just another “thick-faced politician.”

“Politicians majority muka tebal. (The majority of politicians are thick-faced) You think Azeez will resign? Kalau berdemo kat menara Tabung Haji pon he’ll ask you to be tear-gassed k.”