Hajj: Kogi, Nasarawa, Oyo, Bauchi complete airlift as 20,975 Nigerians arrive S/Arabia

A total of 20,975 pilgrims have arrived in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, data from the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) has shown.

The data stated that the pilgrims were ferried in two trips with Kogi, Nassarawa, Bauchi and Oyo states having completed the airlift of their pilgrims 12 days to the exercise.

Speaking with reporters yesterday, the Madinah Coordinator for NAHCON, Ibrahim Mahmud, said the success so far in bringing the large numbers of pilgrims for the Holy Pilgrimage was due to adequate planning.

Mahmud added that each pilgrim will spend four days in Medina before they will be moved to Makkah.

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He urged the pilgrim to be law-abiding while having in mind that their visit is to worship Allah and avoid getting involved in whatever that will tarnish the image of Nigeria.

He added that since the commencement of airlift, no Nigerian pilgrim has been reported for any mischief.

While assuring that every pilgrim will get the same standard quality in accommodation and feeding, he said, “We have been doing our best. We have also got cooperation from the Saudi authorities and so far, we have also got cooperation from the pilgrims.”

Meanwhile, an Islamic scholar, Sheikh Muhammad Nuru Khalid, has commended NAHCON for the improved welfare of pilgrims in this year’s Hajj.

Sheikh Khalid said there was much positive difference in the wcompared to the previous years.

Specifically, he said NAHCON did well in securing hotel accommodation for the pilgrims at a walkable distance to Prophet Muhammad’s Mosque in the holy city, adding that the reception accorded them on arrival at the Mohammed Bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Madinah was well organised.

He also enjoined pilgrims to be careful in the way they spend money in the holy land in view of the little amount allotted to them as BTA, reminding them that the main Hajj activity is in Makkah, especially at the Masha’ir (holy sites).