NAHCON chair spends third night in EFCC detention

The Chairman of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria, Jalal Arabi, and the commission’s secretary, Abdullahi Kontagora, spent the third night in the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission following their failure to bail conditions.

The anti-graft agency is grilling the NAHCON helmsmen over alleged mismanagement or diversion of parts of the N90bn released by the Federal Government to subsidy the 2024 Hajj pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia.

An insider in the anti-graft agency confided in The PUNCH on Thursday that Arabi and Kontagora had yet to meet their bail conditions, hence, their further detention.

“They have been granted bail but they are yet to meet their bail conditions. This night will be their third in custody,” the source said on condition of anonymity because they were not permitted to speak officially.

The PUNCH exclusively reported on Thursday that the EFCC had recovered 314,098 Saudi Riyal from Arabi and others in the course of the ongoing probe.

In a document sighted by our correspondent on Wednesday, the anti-graft agency said, “A total of

SR314,098 was recovered,” from the NAHCON chairman and other ranking officials.

The EFCC said its investigation revealed that from the N90bn Hajj subsidy, Arabi fraudulently overpaid himself and others the necessary operational costs.

“The chairman fraudulently overpaid himself, the commissioners, the secretary and the directors for the 2024 Hajj operational cost.

“The chairman was entitled to SR15,929 but he got SR50,000; three commissioners who were meant to get SR 15,929 each received SR 40,000 each. The secretary got SR 30,000 instead of SR14,336. Directors/Chief of Staff received SR 30,000 instead of the SR2,550 they were entitled to.  The total of SR314,098 were recovered from all of them.”

The anti-graft agency had first grilled Arabi for hours on July 29 and released him on bail.

Also, last week Wednesday, some top officials of the Hajj commission were arrested by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission over alleged mismanagement or diversion of the N90bn subsidy.

On Wednesday, a source in the EFCC told our correspondent that the NAHCON Chairman was taken in again on Wednesday for questioning and was detained.

 “The Secretary and Chairman of the commission are in our custody and are facing serious interrogations on the N90bn subsidy, among other allegations,” the source said on condition of anonymity because they could not speak officially.