Some pilgrims from Kaduna state who performed the 2024 Hajj have given the National Hajj Commission and the state pilgrims welfare agency one month to furnish them with detailed spending of their Hajj fares or face legal action.
This was contained in a letter dated August 26, 2024 addressed to the Chairman, Kaduna state pilgrims welfare agency and copied to the NAHCON Chairman by Bashir Musa and Associates, counsel for the pilgrims.
The letter obtained by Daily Trust demanded a report of how the pilgrims’ money from Zaria Local Government Area for the 2024 Hajj operation was spent and payment of balance.
It said the pilgrims, who performed the pilgrimage through the agency, paid the sum of N4,505,000, N199,000, and N1,918,500 making the total sum of N6,622,500.
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“However, our clients have discovered not only deliberate maltreatment, inhuman treatment and abandonment of their persons by your officials but also unequal treatment during the operation.
“Our clients note with disdain, that some pilgrims were given the sum of $500 while our clients were giving the sum of $400 only for their upkeep during the operation while they were supposed to be paid the sum of $700. Our clients hereby demand the refund of their balances,” the letter read.
The affected pilgrims also complained of staying in the city of Madina for only 4 and 3 days respectively, when they were supposed to stay for 8 days to perform their full rituals.
“No explanations were proffered to our clients by your agency whatsoever, nor were they refunded the monies for the remaining days which include hotel fees and feeding.
“Our clients are in the know of the contribution of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to them in the sum of N90,000,000,000 to assist and ease their Hajj.
“And by the calculations of our clients,they discovered that each pilgrim would be entitled to N1,631,500 but to the surprise of our clients, no penny was given to our clients and no explanations were given on how that money was spent,” it added.
The pilgrims raised the alarm on the contribution of the Kaduna State Government to further ease their Hajj performance, saying nothing was paid to them.
“You also gave our clients substandard foods boldly written to be eaten within one hour, but distributed to our clients after one hour and after it had spoiled, making our clients to either eat or waste it,” the letter said.
The pilgrims also expressed displeasure at the accommodations given to them which they complained of being crowded with 6-8 pilgrims per room, and 4 in some few rooms, while the agency’s officials occupied a room each or in a few instances two officials per room.
The pilgrims therefore gave the agency one month’s ultimatum to furnish them with full details of how their funds were spent and how the contributions of both federal and Kaduna state governments were spent as well as refund the remaining balances of $100/$300 to each of them or risk legal action.
Efforts to reach Yunusa Mohammed Makarfi, the Public Relations Officer, Kaduna State pilgrims welfare agency were not successful as he was yet to respond to calls and a text message sent to his mobile phone.
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