KUALA LUMPUR (April 2): Lembaga Tabung Haji's newly appointed chairman Tan Sri Abdul Rashid Hussain said his main priority as he takes the helm at the pilgrim management fund is to "sort out" legacy issues.

The former investment banker did not specify the exact legacy issues that he needs to resolve when he spoke at the press conference in conjunction with the release of Tabung Haji's financials in 2023.

Abdul Rashid, however, highlighted that it is important to stabilise the pilgrim fund's balance sheet in order to maintain sustainable earnings for the foreseeable future. Besides, he said Tabung Haji needs to strengthen its investment team is also another top priority for the newly appointed chairman.

"Tabung Haji is a very well-established institution with a history that runs for about 60 years. It has a lot of legacy issues, so obviously the first things are to sort out the legacy issues and stabilise the balance sheet in order to maintain sustainable earnings for the future," he told the media.

In addition, Abdul Rashid said another concern would be the rising costs of performing haj that would have to be borne by the depositors as well as Tabung Haji through the subsidy it provides.

"My main concern for the future is the escalation of cost in performing haj, 85% of the cost of performing haj are external — the agencies, transportation, and accommodation. In the longer term, the cause for concern will be if we have to reduce the subsidy or only subsidise the poorest segment," he said.

Earlier, Tabung Haji noted that the cost of performing haj has risen by about 8% from RM30,850 per person in 2023, to RM33,300 this year, driven by higher accommodation costs in Saudi Arabia following the rapid development surrounding the holy cities of Medina and Mecca.

For this year’s haj season, the fee for a prospective haj pilgrim from the B40 (bottom 40% income) group, who is performing the pilgrimage for the first time, has been set at RM12,356, while it is RM19,152 for the M40 (middle 40% income) group, after deducting subsidy by Tabung Haji.

Following the rise in haj expenses, Tabung Haji has allocated financial assistance amounting to 63% of the haj cost for the B40 group, and 42% for the M40 group.

As for the T20 (Top 20% income) group, similar to last year, pilgrims are required to make the full payment of RM33,300.

Abdul Rashid was appointed as the chairman of Tabung Haji on Dec 20 last year, taking over from Tan Sri Azman Mokhtar, who has served the position for two years from Dec 20, 2021.

Abdul Rashid, co-founder of Rashid Hussain Securities and the RHB Banking Group, was also one of six members of the Tabung Haji Royal Commission of Inquiry set up in 2022 to review the fund’s operations in the 2014-2020 period.

Abdul Rashid lost control of RHB when he was "forced" to sell his stake after falling out of favour with the political powers that be following the 1998 Asian Financial Crisis.