The Prime Minister's Special Haj Sponsorship Programme, introduced seven years ago, has taken more than 5,000 people on the haj pilgrimage to the holy land, said Najib Abdul Razak.

The prime minister said the programme would be continued although it had achieved its goal so that more people would be able to fulfill the fifth pillar of Islam.

In a post today on his Facebook page, Najib said it was satisfying to know that the government’s dream of enabling many grassroots leaders to go on the pilgrimage had been achieved.

These grassroots leaders such as imam, bilal, civil servants, chairpersons of village development and security committees and retired teachers had contributed a great deal to society but lacked resources, he said.

Under the programme for this year, about 1,100 people from around the country will get the opportunity to perform the haj.

Statistics show that 111 people went on the pilgrimage under the programme in 2011; 400 in 2012; 776 in 2013; 984 in 2014; 1,181 in 2015 and 1,090 in 2016.

- Bernama