Saudi Gazette report MAKKAH — The Ministry of Haj has relieved more than 100 mutawifs (Haj guides) because they are over 65, Al-Madinah newspaper reported. Minister of Haj Bandar Hajjar has approved a new bylaw for the election and appointment of board members of the mutawifs' organizations. According to the bylaw, which consists of 55 articles, the maximum age for those contesting to the board is 65 years and there is no bar on the number of terms. The new bylaw says two female Haj guides shall be appointed to the board. Mutawif Husain Hasan Huwait, who was relieved as a result of the directive, is considered one of pioneering Haj guides. He served as the head of a civil service association and offered many valuable services to the industry. He has been extensively recognized by the ministry and the Tawafa Organization (Haj guide body) for Arab Pilgrims, which is why he described the ministry's decision as “insulting and illogical”. Huwait tried to contact the authorities to persuade them to overturn the decision because he said he is still able to perform the role, but to no avail. He said: “Being a mutawif does not require an age limit. It is a tradition that runs in mutawif families. “The ministry's decision has caused more harm than good because it should benefit from the experience of those elderly mutawifs.” Mutawif Mohammad Al-Subaie agreed with Huwait and said the ministry should make use of the experienced Haj guides to teach the younger ones. He said: “The ministry's decision violates the royal decree issued for mutawifs because there was never an age limit. Being a mutawif is something you can only inherit. There is no school that offers mutawif diplomas. “The ministry should have run medical checkups to ensure the mutawif's inability to serve rather than assume this based on age.” Fellow mutawif Hasan Shibrawaishi said the ministry was being “ignorant” of the valuable input and development offer by experienced Haj guides. “Any industry in the world makes use of experienced practitioners to train new ones, so how can the Ministry of Haj take such a decision? “There were no evaluation procedures or medical records to prove the mutawifs' inability to contribute or a statement that their age was of any relevance.” The Ministry of Haj's spokesman Hatim Bin Hasan Qadi said the age limit was not a new declaration and was inserted into the ministry's charter years ago to ensure the availability of equal opportunities to applicants wanting to work in Haj and civil services. “The ministry does not deny the importance of exchanging experiences among new and old mutawifs, but the number of applicants every year is much greater than the need and everyone deserves an opportunity to join the civil and Haj services,” said Qadi.
