The Executive Secretary, Ogun State Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board, Alhaji Salau Dauda, has appealed to the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) to fast-track issuance of the international passport to the 2023 intending pilgrims in the state.
Dauda made the appeal during a courtesy call on the Comptroller of NIS, Ogun State Command, Yakubu Umar, at the command’s state headquarters in Oke-Mosan Abeokuta.
He said the visit was necessary to checkmate the problems encountered during last year’s hajj operation and also to give special consideration to intending pilgrims in their issuance of passports.
Salau stated that NIS is one of the key agencies to reckon with in hajj operation and issuance of international passports as the number one basic travel document needed before embarking on an international journey.
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“We want to give kudos to immigration service for your support all these years. We are here again to ask for continued unalloyed support. We don’t want our intending pilgrims to go through stress before getting their passports done,” Salau said.
He also appealed to the command to critically look into the issue of passport flaws that the board usually faced during the documentation process for visa issuance.
Responding, the Comptroller of Immigration Service, Mr Yakubu Umar, advised the intending pilgrims to apply for their passports early while renewal should be done six months before expiration.
He said the Command was ready to give the necessary support for a successful hajj operation, promising that this year’s hajj would be the best.
