MANILA,
December 21, 2005 (IslamOnline.net) – Like almost every Muslim
across the globe, Filipino believers pray to be able to perform hajj
but only an average of about 2,000 would have their dream come true
due to economic hardships.
"It's
simply impossible for me to be able to afford to be on a hajj with my
current work, " Julisu Delaca, a native of Mindanao's Cotabato
City, told IslamOnline.net on Wednesday, December 21.
"I
cannot even save just 100 US dollars in a year, more so if I need to
spend a fortune of 2,000 US dollars," to perform hajj, added the
father of three.
"It
is a dream of every Muslim to go on hajj once in our lifetime. It is
also asked of us if we can afford it. It is sad but I cannot afford
it."
Hajj
consists of several ceremonies, meant to symbolize the essential
concepts of the Islamic faith, and to commemorate the trials of
Prophet Abraham and his family.
Every
able-bodied adult Muslim who can financially afford the trip must
perform hajj, one of the five pillars of Islam, once in their
lifetime.
Money
Problem
Abdul
Janal, 45, too, wants to go on the spiritual trip but the problem is
money.
"Those
who work in government and private companies cannot afford to
leave," said the cab driver.
If
the two men join a hajj organized by the Office on Muslim Affairs,
which is recognized officially by the Saudi government, they have to
pay nearly 1,900 US dollars.
Independent
tour operators offer lower rates but many pilgrims who went on hajj
with them in previous years have encountered several problems such as
poor accommodation and bad food.
Usop
Kasan, director of the Office on Muslim Affairs' Bureau of Pilgrimage
and Endowment, admitted the majority of Filipino Muslims could not
afford to be on hajj.
"We
want everyone to fulfill this pillar of Islam but it is not possible
to most Filipinos. It's a reality that we have to face," he told
IOL.
He
estimated the number of Filipino Muslims who will be performing hajj
this year at 20,000. Last year, some 2,600 Filipino Muslims took the
spiritual journey.
Kasan
said the government has yet to come up with an endowment fund to
assist those who want to go on hajj.
What
the government has at the moment, he noted, is a sponsorship for the
official leaders of hajj.
Kasan
is also responsible for the "Hajj Awareness Program" which
seeks to offer improved services to the pilgrims.
"As
you are well aware, concerns for security of the hajj and the growing
number of pilgrims and issues on hygiene, logistics, and the physical
well-being of pilgrims became the main thrust of our concern.
"So
there is a need to educate and orient prospective pilgrims," he
said of the program.
Delaca
and Janal, just like thousands of Filipino Muslims, contend themselves
with seeing fellow Muslims leaving for Saudi Arabia.
They
still pray that one day they would realize their dream of taking the
spiritual journey.
The
first batch of Filipino pilgrims will leave Manila on December 29.
The
Philippines has an estimated Muslim minority of eight million or ten
percent of the population.
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