THE Independent Hajj Reporters (IHR) has urged the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to exclude Hajj 2025 intending pilgrims from the new policy of payment of Basic Travel Allowance (BTA) via automated teller machine (ATM) cards.
The IHR, in a statement by its national coordinator, Ibrahim Muhammad, said the policy would create “unprecedented hardship and confusion” in the hajj system in Nigeria.
The group was at the forefront of the same campaign against the use of ATM cards to pay pilgrims their BTA during last year’s hajj.
“We advise the CBN to exclude hajj pilgrims from this policy because of the foreseen hardship to be faced by our dollar pilgrims while in Saudi Arabia,” it said.
Before the commencement of the 2024 hajj airlift, the apex bank had informed the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON), states and the armed forces that the payment of the year’s hajj BTA, which was pegged at $500 per pilgrim, would be issued in the ratio of 60/40 percent cash and card.
The bank said only $200 would be given in cash while the balance of $300 would be given in cards. The decision generated a lot of controversy because of the expected challenges to the use of cards by the average Nigerian pilgrims in Saudi Arabia.
The IHR said it understood that the CBN had promised to implement the policy during the forthcoming hajj exercise.
“Firstly, the majority of Nigerian pilgrims are from rural areas and most of them are not versatile in the use of e-payment systems.
“They can easily enter the wrong pin three times and the cards will be blocked while in Makkah or Madinah, in Saudi Arabia.
“Who will reactivate the cards for them at a time when all focus is on how to carry out hajj rites diligently to attain the utmost reward of hajj mabrur?” the IHR stated.
The group said there are less than 10 ATMs within Misfala and Shara Mansur areas in Makkah – a place where 90 percent of Nigerian pilgrims are accommodated during hajj.
According to the group, pilgrims will be made to pay for the ATM cards and the withdrawal charges which will further deplete their $500 BTA.
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“There is also the risk of losing the ATM cards to thieves and scammers capitalising on the hectic nature of the hajj exercise to defraud the pilgrims,” it noted.
The IHR added that with Nigeria on the grey list of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the tendency is for ATM cards issued by Nigeria to be rejected by a number of vendors outside the shores of the country.
It therefore appealed to the CBN to exclude Nigerian pilgrims from the BTA on card policy to avoid putting pilgrims in jeopardy.
