NAHCON: The Huge Task on Jalal Arabi’s Broad Shoulders

NAHCON: The Huge Task on Jalal Arabi’s Broad Shoulders

By Abdulrahman Abdulraheem

The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) has a peculiar but interesting history. Its peculiarity stems from the fact that it is not meant to serve the advancement or betterment of worldly affairs, like other government agencies do. It is rather a specialised government parastatal that was established to organise a very crucial pillar of Islam and serve the interests, welfare and well-being of Allah’s guests in the Holy Land.

Based on this reality, a critical look at the profile of the men who have served at the helm of affairs of the Commission shows that they were not just politicians or ambitious hustlers, they were Nigerians who were deep in the Deen.

This is because the job of Chairman of NAHCON is not just a job for the boys or one of those political favours that a new President throws at any of his political associates.

Recovering from years of COVID-19 devastation, the immediate past chairman of the Commission, Alhaji Zikrullah Kunle Hassan, achieved major milestones in the 2023 Hajj exercise. He didn’t only convince the Saudi authorities to give Nigeria 95,000 slots, he also successfully delivered that number of pilgrims to the Holy Land and brought them back successfully, a huge feat by the standards of recent years.

NAHCON under his watch also had to encounter a major challenge with the closure of the Sudanese airspace which made the journey longer and forced the airlines to try to pull out of the deal to airlift Nigerian pilgrims to the Holy Land. The authorities had to do a renegotiation and coughed out more resources to avoid such a huge embarrassment.

He promised to provide Nigerian dishes to pilgrims in Makkah which he did. He also promised to keep the pilgrims in 5-star hotels in Madinah which he fulfilled.

Despite the excellent work put together by the immediate past chairman and his team, the 2023 Hajj still had more than a fair share of hiccups. The high point of the hiccups was the well reported incident about inadequate tent and poor quality and quantity of food at Munah which left many Nigerian pilgrims stranded and hungry. The chairman rose to the occasion, stormed the tent, assured the pilgrims of finding a solution. He told journalists that the Saudi authorities (the Mutawwif company) were responsible for the shortage of food and tents.

He confronted the company and ensured they made another arrangement for a 1000-capacity tent available for Nigerians in the section meant for Turkish pilgrims.

The then NAHCON boss showed leadership by tongue-lashing representatives of the company in a meeting which I covered alongside other members of the National Media Team (NMT) to this year’s Hajj.

Expressing the anger of the Nigerian government, he threatened to end decades of partnership with them and demanded financial compensation for the discomfort suffered by Nigerian pilgrims and the reputational damage done to NAHCON.

NAHCON and the State Pilgrims’ Welfare Boards also didn’t do enough to stop pregnant women and very old and sickly people from going for Hajj and this caused a lot of tragedies and embarrassing situations for the Nigerian contingent. Some pilgrims died due to old age-related complications while some pregnant pilgrims gave birth in the course of the Hajj as some of them lost the babies due to the physical demands of the exercise.

Aside the above challenges which NAHCON will have to contend with as preparation for the 2024 Hajj enters top gear, the free fall of the Naira, accessibility of forex, new rules and guidelines set by Saudi Arabia authorities etc are also potential bottlenecks for NAHCON.

Jalal Arabi in the Saddle

If there is anyone who is competent enough on paper and who has the experience, exposure and pedigree to take NAHCON to greater heights, it is definitely Alhaji Jalal Ahmad Arabi.

Anyone who has known Arabi or gone through his impressive resume will agree that he is a square peg in a square hole.

Arabi was born on October 28, 1962. He was educated at the Government Day Secondary School, Gombe state and the College of Arts and Science in Bauchi state. He also attended the University of Jos where he graduated with an LLB in 1983 and he was called to the Bar in 1984.

Arabi has had an enviable career in the civil service which qualifies him for the kind of higher responsibility which he has now been given in NAHCON.

Arabi’s working history started in July, 1985 at the Ministry of Justice in Bauchi State as a State Counsel who later became a Senior State Counsel. He was Secretary/Legal Adviser and Head of Administration at the Bauchi State Water Board from 1989 to August 1990.

He joined the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Water Resources as Legal Officer and Personal Assistant to the Minister.

In May 1993, Barrister Arabi was moved to the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (OSGF) as Legal Adviser where he attended Joint Intelligence Board (JIB) meetings and other security gatherings. He was sent to the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure in December 2000 and for the following two years, he served as Assistant Director (Rail).

His next port of call was the Ministry of Defence where he served as the Deputy Director (Parastatals/Special Services) in January 2003. In June 2007, he was moved to the Presidential Villa where he served as a State House Counsel and where he rose to the position of Permanent Secretary.

He has in the course of his remarkable career served in several adhoc capacities which have further helped to build up his preparations for the kind of higher calling he has now received. He was the assistant secretary of the Panel on Review of Judiciary and Police in 1994; member of Nigerian Legal Team on Bakassi – 1994 to 2002; member of the Sub-Committee on International Criminal Court (ICC) – 1996 to 2000; member of Nigerian Delegation to the UN Human Rights Committee, Geneva – 1996 to 2000; and member from the Ministerial Committee on Re-appraisal of the Nigerian Railway and Repositioning of the Rail Transport Project – 2001.

He was also a member of the Ministerial Committee on the Reorganisation of the Military Pension Board – 2003; member of Ministerial Committee on the Re-assessment and Re-evaluation of Bilateral Military Assistance to Defense Personnel – 2003; member of Inter-Agency Panel on the Clash between Nigeria Air Force and Nigerian Police Personnel – 2003; administrator of Ministry of Defense Anti-Corruption Unit 2003; member of Presidential Committee on Financial Action Task Force; and member of Presidential Committee on Inter-Professional Relationship in the Health Sector.

As a patriotic and passionate civil servant, Barrister Arabi got to the pinnacle of his career, serving as State House Permanent Secretary before retiring. As a devout Muslim, he has now gotten the highest task from Allah which is meant to test his faith, his will and his Deen.

He has promised to deliver quality service to pilgrims who will be Allah’s guests in the Holy Land in a couple of months.

Based on certain peculiarities about the hot seat he is occupying – the politics, the pull him down syndrome, the high expectations of Nigerians especially pilgrims who will always blame NAHCON for everything including high Hajj fare caused by the foreign exchange market, the behaviour of Saudi authorities as well as their unfriendly policies, the lack of cooperation from State Pilgrims’ Welfare Boards and many other potential challenges – Arabi certainly has his job cut out for him.

With the entourage he is moving with, however, which includes former NAHCON boss, Barrister Abdullahi Mukhtar Muhammad, Arabi will hopefully have the required support and guidance to be able to navigate through the turbulent waters that lie ahead.

We pray for Allah’s wisdom and guidance for him as he embarks on this onerous task.