{"id":100998,"date":"2025-10-01T14:48:53","date_gmt":"2025-10-01T12:48:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/?p=100998"},"modified":"2025-10-01T14:49:50","modified_gmt":"2025-10-01T12:49:50","slug":"sahuc-navigates-transition-to-nusuk-hajj-system-amid-scrutiny","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/sahuc-navigates-transition-to-nusuk-hajj-system-amid-scrutiny\/","title":{"rendered":"SAHUC navigates transition to Nusuk Hajj system amid scrutiny"},"content":{"rendered":"

Neelam Rahim | neelam@radioislam.co.za<\/a> <\/em>
\n4-minute read<\/em>
\n01 October 2025 | 14:38 CAT<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"

\ud83d\udcf8 SAHUC navigates its role during the transition to the Nusuk Hajj system.<\/p><\/div>\n

The South African Hajj and Umrah Council (SAHUC) is entering a transitional phase following Saudi Arabia\u2019s adoption of the Nusuk Hajj platform, a move that limits the council\u2019s direct role in organising Hajj trips. SAHUC President Hafiz Moazz Cassoo told Radio Islam International<\/em> <\/a>that the organisation will continue engaging with the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah to define its role in supporting South African pilgrims.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want to also find out from the ministry what is our role going forward with regards to Hajj and for the pilgrims of South Africa,\u201d Cassoo said. \u201cEven though we are now on the Nusuk platform, from an administrative, support, and educational perspective, we will continue serving the pilgrims, inshallah.\u201d<\/p>\n

Political attention has intensified. ANC MP Imraan Subrathie praised SAHUC\u2019s audited results and encouraged greater public engagement, urging efforts to restore South Africa\u2019s annual Hajj quota of 2,500 pilgrims. \u201cWe have been discussing this matter with the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah and, inshallah, we request the duas of the South African Muslim public that at some point the ministry would increase our quota at least back to the normal numbers of 2,500,\u201d Cassoo said.<\/p>\n

The Democratic Alliance has called for a probe into allegations of self-enrichment following the Nusuk transition. Cassoo responded: \u201cWe welcome any investigation\u2026 We\u2019ve got nothing to hide. Our financials are available on the website. We are volunteers. We don\u2019t earn a salary from the South African council.\u201d<\/p>\n

Concerns have also emerged about non-refundable registration fees and accumulated assets. Cassoo explained that senior ulema are consulting on registration fee policies while existing assets, including property, office systems, and cash reserves, cannot be liquidated immediately. \u201cYou can\u2019t just sell it on the market tomorrow morning. Some assets, like our registration and accreditation system, can only be transferred to another Hajj Affairs office,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Despite the scrutiny, SAHUC emphasises ongoing support for pilgrims. Cassoo highlighted that their offices remain open to assist those unsure about registration under Nusuk, particularly first-time pilgrims and senior citizens. \u201cStop focusing on yourselves\u2026 We\u2019ve got 66,000 first-time pilgrims in the queue. By keeping our offices open, we can help them, inshallah,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Regarding SAHUC\u2019s potential future role as a guide under Nusuk, Cassoo clarified: \u201cNo decision has been taken whether SAUC individuals or member organizations would want to become a guide. To become a guide, you don\u2019t need to be a travel operator. We may take the decision in the future, but we will take that one day at a time, and inshallah, make the necessary announcements.\u201d<\/p>\n

SAHUC\u2019s ongoing commitment underscores its mission: supporting South African pilgrims during a period of uncertainty, while navigating political scrutiny and a shifting operational landscape.<\/p>\n

Listen<\/strong> to the full interview on Sabahul Muslim<\/em> <\/a>with Moulana Sulaimaan Ravat and Hafiz Moazz Cassoo.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Neelam Rahim | neelam@radioislam.co.za 4-minute read 01 October 2025 | 14:38 CAT The South African Hajj and Umrah Council (SAHUC) is entering a transitional phase following Saudi Arabia\u2019s adoption of the Nusuk Hajj platform, a move that limits the council\u2019s direct role in organising Hajj trips. SAHUC President Hafiz Moazz Cassoo told Radio Islam International […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":29,"featured_media":100999,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[28,4995,4998],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-100998","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-latest-news","category-south-africa","category-ummah"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Sahuc.jpg?fit=275%2C183&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pc0QIf-qh0","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-04-26 14:15:59","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100998","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/29"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=100998"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100998\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/100999"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=100998"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=100998"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=100998"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}