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The Chairman of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON),
Professor Abdullahi Usman has admitted to the prevalence of dirty deals in the commission.
Usman whose appointment as NAHCON chairman was confirmed by the Senate on October 10, 2024, admitted this while responding to remark by the Chairman, House of Representatives ad-hoc committee investigating the activities of the commission and FCTA Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board, Hon. Sada Soli (APC, Katsina).
The House had in July set up an ad-hoc committee to investigate the activities of NAHCON and the FCTA Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board, their agents and sub-agents over the conduct of the 2024 Hajj exercise.
This followed a motion moved by Hon. Mohammed Umar Bio (APC, Kwara) at plenary where he accused the commission and FCT Administration’s Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board of shoddy preparation and execution of the 2024 Hajj exercise.
At the investigative hearing in Abuja, the ad-hoc committee’s chairman, Soli, told the NAHCON boss that the agency was dirty.
He said, “Mr Chairman, I pity you. You are in an organisation that is very dirty. NAHCON is very dirty.”
Responding, Professor Usman who joined the investigative hearing later in the day said, “Yes, I agree.”
The ad-hoc committee chairman had earlier accused NAHCON of obvious discrepancies in subsidies to pilgrims, saying the agency was doing this for personal gains of certain interests.
Commissioner for Operations at NAHCON, Olarewaju Elegushi, represented the chairman of the Commission, but Soli insisted that the commissioner must call his boss on the phone while the hearing was ongoing for to appear personally.
Grilling the Elegushi, Soli asked, “How come you are giving subsidy, full subsidy, half subsidy and some none and they are all Nigerians?”
While responding, the Commissioner said those that did not enjoy subsidy came after the agency had closed the registration of pilgrims that would enjoy it.
The panel’s chairman insisted that as long as they are Nigerians and pilgrims, they are entitled to enjoy the same privilege. “We are speaking for the average Nigerian who would save money for five years and yet, they would go to Saudi, and you would mess them up because of simple things to do.
“Be disciplined and do the right thing and close your eyes. You must not bring enterprise in what people spend their lives to invest in. You are giving subsidies at will because you have been given the authority. Who gave you the subsidy? Did the Federal Government tell you what to do with it? You are selective because it will favour you at the end of the day.”
The committee further interrogated the commission on the disparity in basic travel allowances and exchange rates for pilgrims as well as patronising foreign airlines for the Hajj at the detriment of local carriers among other issues.
A member of the committee and mover the motion that led to the probe, Hon. Bio, said despite the huge resources made available for the 2024 Hajj, the exercise turned out to be a failure.
“Despite the huge amount of money paid by Nigerian pilgrims, NAHCON also received support of N90 billion from the Federal Government. We are surprised by all this inflow that NAHCON has shown an abysmal performance in 2024,” he said.
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