We’ll Airlift all Nigerian Pilgrims to Saudi Within 25 Days – NAHCON Boss

We’ll Airlift all Nigerian Pilgrims to Saudi Within 25 Days – NAHCON Boss

The Chairman of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON), Alhaji Zikrullah Kunle Hassan, has assured Nigerian pilgrims of a hitch-free exercise, saying within the next 25 days, all of them would have been airlifted to the Holy Land.

He added that there are about 15 take-off points/cities across the country which the Commission is working on to ensure they are ready to support the plan to avoid any delays in airlifting of pilgrims.

Fielding questions from journalists after the official flag-off of the 2023 Hajj exercise at the Pilgrims Terminal of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja on Thursday, the NAHCON boss said the commission had put measures in place to ensure that this year’s Hajj is the best so far in terms of logistics, welfare, safety, feeding and accommodation for pilgrims.

Addressing the gathering just before President Muhammadu Buhari flagged off the exercise for this year, the NAHCON chairman said: “We were able to negotiate a reasonable price for hotel accommodation in Makkah knowing full well that numerous hotels have been demolished for futuristic development. Also, we have been able to maintain the standard in Madinah whereby our pilgrims are lodged in 5-star hotels within the prestigious Markaziyya vicinity surrounding the Prophet’s Mosque.”

He continued: “Thankfully, despite the unprecedented challenge caused by the closure of the Sudan airspace hence forcing a re-route from Nigeria to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, we give gratitude to the Almighty for leading us to a smooth resolution of the quagmire. We appreciate federal government for waiving numerous aviation charges, the airlines for their sacrifices, the States’ Pilgrims Welfare Boards and our Pilgrims who all cooperated to arrive at an amiable solution to the seeming bottleneck.

“Similarly, the Commission, in collaboration with the Mutawwif’s Company for Pilgrims of Non-Arab African Countries popularly known as Muassasa, have put in place mechanisms for the comfort and safety of our pilgrims.”

He also announced that this year’s pilgrims would be served indigenous meals which means they won’t have to be starved of their favourite Nigerian foods for that lengthy period.

“We have agreed that this year, our pilgrims would be served indigenous meals. To this end, the Commission created job opportunities for our Nigerian caterers by insisting that Saudi based caterers work in partnership with them in preparing Nigerian local cuisines for our pilgrims.

“Hiring indigenous airlines for the airlift operations is the Commission’s way of promoting local airlines to remain in business,” he noted.

While thanking President Buhari for the massive support he gave to the Commission, he called on the pilgrims “to be good representatives of Nigeria by abiding to the rules and regulations of our host country, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.”

“I must commend the Custodians of the Two Holy mosques for their hospitality to pilgrims from all over the world. Truly they pride themselves as hosts to the Guests of the Most Merciful and they must be commended for playing this role well. I enjoin our pilgrims, here present and others that will follow, to pray for the peace and progress of our beloved country, Nigeria.

“The Commission appreciates the cooperation of all Stakeholders in the Hajj arrangements so far, however, it is now time for execution of these plans, we therefore urge you all to ensure readiness on all fronts, as you are aware, lapses in flight operations have a multiplier effect on other aspects of operations.

“All Nigerian Pilgrims traveling for Hajj 2023 are ambassadors of Nigeria in the Kingdom, hence, they should be law abiding to the regulations of the Kingdom, uphold the tenets of Islam, be courteous to their fellow pilgrims and above all, they should be well acquainted with the obligations of Hajj which is the main purpose of their journey.

“On this note, I want to restate and re assure Nigerians that this year’s Hajj won’t be just about stories but stories of success. We have made and concluded arrangements to ensure that the accommodation, feeding and transportation facilities on ground are the best.

“We are all aware of the crisis in Sudan, we plead with our pilgrims as they will have to traverse through a route longer than usual. In the light of the above, the States are urged to properly enlighten their pilgrims,” he concluded.

In his goodwill message, the Sultan of Sokoto, Abubakar Saad III, who was represented by the Secretary-General of the Nigeria Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, Professor Isiaq Oloyede, urged the pilgrims to be good ambassadors of Nigeria and Islam when they get to the Holy Land.

Also speaking, the Chairman, Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs, Senator Adamu Bulkachuwa, lamented that the journey to Saudi Arabia may now take seven hours instead of four hours due to the closure of the Sudanese airspace.

He however expressed gratitude to God and commended NAHCON leadership for being able to renegotiate with the airlines and strike a good deal in the face of the challenge brought by the Sudan crisis.

PRNIGERIA can recall that NAHCON had already signed a deal with the airlines on the basis of a four-hour trip from anywhere in Nigeria to Saudi Arabia before the the Sudanese incident which increased the journey time to seven hours and forced the airlines to seek a renegotiation, a challenge which stakeholders on the side of government were able to solve.