Bauchi State Governor, Sen Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State has berated the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) for disappointing Nigerians who are performing the ongoing 2024 Hajj in Saudi Arabia.
The Governor expressed his displeasure while interacting with the state pilgrims at Mina, the city of tents in Mecca as monitored by Tribune Online in Bauchi.
To this end, Bala Mohammed stressed the need to decentralize most of the Hajj operations in a manner that would allow state governments to take full control of Hajj affairs towards ensuring adequate welfare of their pilgrims who paid for Hajj seats through their respective States’ Pilgrims Welfare Boards.
He stated that in this year’s Hajj exercise, pilgrims were subjected to untold hardships due to the unfavourable policies introduced by NAHCON and relevant stakeholders.
The Governor specifically made reference to the provision of less than 500 US dollars as a Basic Travelling Allowance (BTA) to each pilgrim despite the exorbitant charges of over N8m paid for a Hajj seat.
Mohammed therefore assured that the state governors would work collectively to break the monopoly of Hajj Affairs by NAHCON if measures are not taken to address the challenges identified.
The Governor then used the opportunity to announce a donation of 300 Saudi Riyals to each of the 2,680 Bauchi state pilgrims as Sallah gifts urging them to continue praying for the peace and stability of Nigeria particularly the success of government policies and programmes.
Meanwhile, the Chairman of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON), Alhaji Jalal Ahmad Arabi while addressing the State contingents, explained that most of the challenges are beyond the control of the Commission.
He, however, commended the pilgrims for their patience and understanding towards achieving success in the Hajj exercise assuring that the Federal Government will look into all the complaints and work towards addressing the issues before the next exercise.
During the visit, the Chairman of HISBAH Committee, Kano State, Sheikh Aminu Daurawa also addressed the state pilgrims, commending Governor Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed for his support and concern for the pilgrims.
The Executive Secretary, Bauchi State Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board, Imam Abdulrahman Idris appreciated the concern of the Governor towards the welfare and well-being of the pilgrims in the Holy Land.
He said that the donation of the 300 Saudi Riyals would assist the pilgrims greatly and prayed Allah to reward the Governor abundantly.
ALSO READ THESE TOP STORIES FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE
Citizens need change of mindset for Nigeria to make progress — Tinubu
