HAJJ 2024: How NAHCON Weathered the Storm

HAJJ 2024: How NAHCON Weathered the Storm

By Ibrahim Dan-Halilu

“As we reflect on the challenges overcome and the successes recorded, I am proud to report that notwithstanding the reservations entered which we appreciate was within individual rights, the 2024 Hajj was a success: thanks to cooperation and coordination with stake holders, including State Pilgrims’ Welfare Boards and some tour operators.”

This is the verdict passed on the 2024 Hajj by no other than the Chairman of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON), Alhaji Jalal Ahmad Arabi at a world press conference held in Abuja on Monday July 29.

As the regulator for the administration of Hajj in Nigeria, NAHCON organised the press conference to offer a fresh and authoritative insight on the conduct of the 2024 Hajj, and to clear the perceived controversies and criticism it has generated among some stake holders and the public alike.

Though some of the controversies are not new, there are some that as a result of what one may regard as ignorance. The press conference can therefore be described as timely intervention to clear the air on some of the insinuations against the Commission.

Prior to the conference, two highly visible Nigerian institutions have interrogated NAHCON’s role in the conduct of the 2024 Hajj operations. The National Assembly had earlier in the month set up a committee to probe the Hajj 2024.

Following the trail, was the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) which had invited the NAHCON Chairman to its office to respond to petitions filed by some unnamed persons, alleging mismanagement of the N90 billion Federal Government intervention to the Commission.

On the heels of those interrogations, the governors of Bauchi and Niger States, Bala Mohammed and Mohammed Bago respectively also gave a damning criticism of NAHCON’s management of the 2024 Hajj. Governor Bago went to the extreme of threatening to lead a campaign for the disbanding of the Commission to hand over its functions to state governments.

In the midst of these criticisms, threats, and unsubstantiated claims, the NAHCON Chairman leveraged on the world press conference to clear the air on the controversial areas so that critics and other stake holders can make informed judgement on the conduct of the exercise.

Responding to the alleged mismanagement of the N90bn Federal Government lifeline, the NAHCON Chairman revealed that the Commission had a tough time trying to spread the funds equitably such that no registered pilgrim would need to pay additional money after the initial N4.9m deposit.

He explained that when the plan failed, the Commission gave priority to pilgrims that came under the Hajj Savings Scheme and officials who received N3,555,464.74 each to settle the balance of their Hajj fare.

A document made available to the press shows that the Commission had spent N10.25bn on this category of persons, which include 1,884 pilgrims that were under the Hajj Savings Scheme (HSS) and 1000 officials from the three tiers of government.

The documents further revealed that the Commission had used N475million to settle the cumulative difference of the Hajj fare while the balance of N79billion was spread equitably to the remaining 48,414 states pilgrims, who received N1,637369.87 each to settle part of the balance of their Hajj fare.

According to Arabi, the second category of pilgrims still paid a balance of N1.9million to complete their Hajj fare. He further explained that while some of the state pilgrims paid the balance by themselves others received another lifeline from their state governments to complete the balance of their Hajj fare.

Besides the controversial N90 billion federal government lifeline, one other thorny issue that NAHCON will need to address is the subtle conflict between the Commission and some of the State Pilgrims Welfare Boards (SPWBs) on the one hand, and the Commission and some Private Tour Operators (PTOs) on the other hand.

For a very long time, the SPWBs seem to be uncomfortable with some of the roles that NAHCON is playing in the administration and management of Hajj. Some of the SPWBs believe that the Commission is intruding into roles that are meant for them and the PTOs.

Some of the areas of their disagreement include visa processing, selection of service providers, and the implementation of the Hajj Savings Scheme. Some of the SPWBs wanted to take over the administration of these components of Hajj management. But NAHCON as a regulator believes it has a crucial role to play in these matters for the overall success of Hajj.

The Commission hinges its position on the directive from the Saudi authorities that NAHCON is the only recognized body representing Nigeria in matters related to Hajj.

Two years after takeoff, the HSS is still being resisted by many SPWBs who prefer their pilgrims to make deposits into the SPWBs accounts and remit same to NAHCON when the Hajj fare is announced. This has led to long delay in remittances.

Some of the Private Tour Operators (PTOs) too have shown their stiff resistance to the Commission’s handling of visa processing and other preparatory stages of the Hajj. These disagreements came to limelight during 2024 Hajj when the leadership of the PTOs indicated their intention to opt for a different service provider.

As things turned out, the PTOs could not agree among themselves on a choice of service provider recommended by their leadership. This led to a deadlock, prompting the Commission to overrule and instructed the PTOs to work with Ithra Al Khair Service Providers, which was the NAHCON’s choice.

Another incidence that exposed the conflict was the failure of some of the PTOs to remit the Hajj fares of their pilgrims to NAHCON’s account at the Central Bank of Nigeria, which almost delayed the visa process.

The NAHCON Chairman amplified this concern during the conference when he retorted: “some of these remittances into our account for onward transfer into the PTOs IBAN account got credited only on the day of Arafat. …the affected pilgrims would not have performed Hajj but for the Commission’s proactiveness” (sic).

While NAHCON was expecting their remittances, some of the PTOs went out of their way to deal directly with the Saudi Ministry of Hajj and Umrah. The latter disapproved of this move, and directed the PTOs to pay their pilgrims’ visa fees through NAHCON which is the only recognized channel representing Nigeria.

Another concern was the sharing formula adopted by NAHCON for the N90 billion Federal Government intervention. While the Commission preferred to allocate the money to only pilgrims under the government quota and other officials, the PTOs insisted that pilgrims under their quota too deserved to be considered. In the end, NAHCON stood its ground and did what it regarded as fair.

According to Arabi, two reasons accounted for the Commission’s decision. Firstly, the Federal Government had requested NAHCON to give priority to pilgrims under government quota because of their commitment to performing the Hajj as manifested in their long time deposits.

Secondly, pilgrims under the PTOs quota were largely from the affluent in the society, which meant that they could afford to pay the balance of the Hajj fare without seeking assistance from any quarters.

Addressing the issue of the scarcity of VIP tents for Nigerian pilgrims in Mina, the NAHCON Chairman exonerated the Commission from any blame. He maintained that the Commission’s role is to supervise and ensure that every pilgrim got a tent D category as specified in the visa application.

“After securing the visas based on the camp D category, the usual practice was for the VIPs to pay for the VIP tent upgrades through the PTOs as the body recognized to do so. This invariably exonerates NAHCON from any blame for not securing Tent A for the VIPs because NAHCON does not collect payment from individuals,” the NAHCON Chairman explained.

Arabi further pointed out that despite the change in the system for VIP tent upgrades, which required pilgrims to indicate their preferences during the visa application process, the Commission was still able to acquire 17 VIP tents for some states and officials.

“Those states that leveraged the goodwill of NAHCON in the Ministry secured some tents in Mina and Arafat for their principals, said the NAHCON Chairman. The states that benefited from this gesture are Jigawa and Niger, which got 9 and 8 tents, respectively.

Speaking further on the controversial areas of the 2024 Hajj, Arabi noted that many pilgrims have complained that the $500 basic Travel Allowance was quite inadequate. He however explained that the decision was arrived at after consultation with the SPWBs who were expected to brief their pilgrims so that they could source for additional dollars through the open market since the exchange rate was the same.

He added that the short fall from the approved $500 was as a result of the unilateral decision of the commercial banks responsible for issuing the BTA which raised the exchange rate above the original N626,000 earlier deposited for each pilgrim.

He assured the public that the Commission would take up the matter with the Central Bank of Nigeria which is the regulating body for all commercial banks to address the disparity in the exchange rates and ensure that refunds are made if necessary.

Responding to questions from journalist on the 150 clerics sponsored by NAHCON, which was regarded as too much under the circumstance, the Chairman said the Commission would have sponsored thousands because of their strategic role they play in assisting the pilgrims to performance the Hajj rites.

“If NAHCON had its way, it would have sponsored thousands of clerics because they play a crucial role in the Hajj exercise. They guide pilgrims on how to perform the Hajj rites. Many of the pilgrims would not have performed the Hajj rites without the support of the clerics,” Arabi argued.

The Chairman said he believes that the federal medical team too should have been enlarged because of the demand for their services by pilgrims, emphasizing that the Commission was very transparent in its recruitment of the medical personnel for 2024 Hajj.

“We conducted a transparent screening and selection process. Many who knew nobody were selected because of their performance at the screening. They convinced the Commission of their readiness, capacity, and competence to provide quality service to our pilgrims,” he added.

Arabi maintained that NAHCON will remain committed to transparency and accountability in the discharge of its functions, to promote equitable access to its facilities and services for all pilgrims, in order to uphold the sanctity and inclusiveness of the Hajj experience.

The NAHCON Chairman assured Nigerians of NAHCON’s commitment to hold other stakeholders in the Hajj operations accountable and apply appropriate sanctions to erring operators.