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Tag: pilgrims

  • NCPC ends airlift of pilgrims

    NCPC ends airlift of pilgrims

    The Nigerian Christian Pilgrim Commission (NCPC) successfully ended the airlift of pilgrims for the second Easter pilgrimage exercise on March 23.

    The last batch of pilgrims arrived on April 1.  The commission kept to its promise of embarking on two pilgrimages in one calendar year, October- December and March – April.

    The commission introduced the first Easter pilgrimage exercise in 2012 to give states who could not meet up with the deadline for payment of the October- December pilgrimage the opportunity to embark on pilgrimage during Easter and importantly for pilgrims to experience the power of resurrection in the holy land during the Easter pilgrimage exercise.

    The year 2013 Easter pilgrimage was officially flagged off on February 28 at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja by the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Emeka Ihedioha.

    Other dignitaries who graced the occasion included the Chairman of NCPC, Rev. Nicholas .D. Okoh , Minister of State for FCT Oloye Olajumoke Akinjide, Rev Williams Okoye, Venerable Obioma Onwuzurumba who is the Chaplain of Aso Villa Chapel, House Committee Chairman on Foreign Affairs, Hon Nnenna Ukaeje, Senator Christopher Babajide Omoworare, Vice Chairman Senate Committee on Inter-Governmental Affairs and Federal Character, Senator Philip Taminu Aduda, among others. About 376 pilgrims from FCT and Benue State were the first batch to be airlifted.

    Welcoming the last batch of pilgrims at the local wing of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja on April 1, the representative of Mr. President, Navy Captain Caleb Olubolade, who is the Minister of Police Affairs, received the pilgrims on behalf of Mr. President.

    He addressed them in the Atlasjet aircraft which landed at 5:45pm. He urged the pilgrims to continue to pray for the success of the administration of Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan. He assured them that Mr. President was happy to see them back safely.

    Also, the Minister of State 1 Foreign Affairs, Prof. Viola Onwuliri, in her address, said: “I warmly and happily welcome you back to Nigeria. You came back with the resurrection power of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

    She further stressed: “We thank God for the grace, we thank God you came back safely without any abscondment.

    “This is great because it will encourage the government to continue to support pilgrimage exercise. The administration of President Jonathan will continue to support anything that will make the people happy.”

    Prof. Onwuliri also commended the Executive Secretary of NCPC Mr. John Kennedy Opara and his workforce for their commitment and hard work.

    She stressed that the prayers Pilgrims offered for the country during their sojourn in Israel will usher in permanent peace in Nigeria.

    In his remarks, the NCPC boss, Mr. John Kennedy Opara described Pilgrimage as a tool for moral transformation and spiritual rebirth. He affirmed that the Easter Pilgrimage exercise would continue to grow in leaps and bounds. He prayed and thanked God for the safe arrivals of the pilgrims and urged them to live a transformed life by impacting positively to their immediate communities.

    A total of 18 states with a combined total number of 3130 pilgrims were airlifted during the Easter Pilgrimage Exercise. It is important to state that about 83 Christians sponsored themselves to the Holy Land during the Easter Pilgrimage Exercise.

    The Commission made use of Atlasjet Airline as the official carrier for the Easter Pilgrimage Exercise. The package was the same as it was for the October- December exercise.

    The Commission rather than increase the package fee for pilgrims for the Easter Pilgrimage considering the cost and the season in Israel during the period, had to reduce the number of days from the usual 10nights and 11 days to 8nights and 9 days.

    The Commission by the grace of God recorded both zero abscondment and zero mortality rate for pilgrims throughout the exercise.

    The Nigerian Christian Pilgrim Commission (NCPC), having successfully ended the second edition of its Easter Pilgrimage Exercise which in all ramifications is adjudged to be much better organized and executed than the maiden edition of 2012; it is therefore obvious that it is possible to have two pilgrimages in one calendar year and this will be sustained as the Commission will continue to strive for excellence and improve upon its service for the Nigerian Pilgrims.

    The last batch of pilgrims from the Holy Land were made up of about 138 pilgrims from Bayelsa and about 38 were self sponsored pilgrims and Consular Officers.

  • Seven states refused to sponsor Christian pilgrims, says Oritsejafor

    Seven states refused to sponsor Christian pilgrims, says Oritsejafor

    Seven states in the North declined to sponsor Christian Pilgrims last year, it emerged yesterday.

    The Federal Government delegation to the 2012 Christian pilgrimage to the Holy land listed the states as Jigawa, Kano, Sokoto, Katsina, Zamfara, Benue and Gombe.

    The delegation, led by Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) President Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, submitted its report to President Goodluck Jonathan.

    It announced that 16,372 Nigerians participated in the Christian pilgrimage.

    Promising to discuss with the states, President Jonathan maintained that the Federal Government cannot force any state government to sponsor pilgrims if they do not want to do so.

    But he cautioned that such a decision not to sponsor pilgrims must affect both Christian and Muslim pilgrims.

    He said: “Government cannot force state governments to sponsor pilgrims if they don’t want to do so. If they decide to pull out from sponsoring pilgrims, there is nothing we can do. But if some state governments are sponsoring pilgrims of one religion and leaving out the other, that is against the law. Nigeria is a secular state and so nobody should be discriminated against based on religious belief.”

    Jonathan also promised the National Christian Pilgrims Commission (NCPC) for its efforts in winning the confidence of the Italian authorities.

    “I am pleased to hear that Italian authorities now rely on the commission to issue visa to intending pilgrims. It is a sign of confidence in the commission, led by John Okpara and, indeed, in the country,” he added

    He also listed other achievements of the NCPC to include the absence of cases of pilgrims absconding during pilgrimage to the holy land and improvements in the organisation of the annual exercise with no negative report emanating from the program.

    Indicating interest to attend this year’s pilgrimage, Jonathan said it would afford him the opportunity to engage authorities of the State of Israel on the need for a Bilateral Air Service Agreement between Nigeria and Israel to make the journey from Nigeria less stressful.

    He promised to consider the recommendation that members of the Federal Government delegation be given a two-year tenure instead of the present arrangement where members are appointed yearly.

    He said: “We shall look at your suggestion that the government delegation be given two-year tenure. There is a sense in the suggestion because there will be continuity and memory. Such decision will also help me because I won’t keep appointing people everyday.

    “It was for the same reason of continuity and institutional memory that we decided that the Sultan, by virtue of his position, be the permanent leader of the government delegation for Muslim pilgrimage while the President of the Christian Association of Nigeria leads that of Christian pilgrimage every year,” he said.

    Presenting the report, Pastor Oritsejafor said there was a sharp reduction in the number of Christians who participated in the 2012 pilgrimage when compared with the figure of the previous year. He recommended the need for the Federal Government delegation for every year to be inaugurated early enough to give them ample time to plan.

    Pastor Oritsejafor was accompanied by the Chairman of the NCPC, the Most Rev. Nicholas Okoh; the Executive Secretary, Mr. John Okpara; the Chaplain to the President, Ven. Obioma Onwuzuruba; Minister of Water Resources Mrs. Sarah Ochekpe and other members of the 11-man Federal Government delegation.

  • Osun pilgrims ‘most-disciplined’

    Last year’s Hajj pilgrims from Osun State have been rated the most disciplined and best behaved.

    Governor Rauf Aregbesola said this yesterday in Osogbo, the state capital, while receiving the report of the 2012 Hajj Operation from the Alhaji Zikrullah Hassan-led Osun Hajj Operation Committee.

    He said he was impressed that pilgrims from the state were adequately oriented, which led to their good behaviour.

    Aregbesola said: “With the report I heard, you were about the best in terms of management and coordination. I also heard that Osun was clearly the most organised, the best behaved and the most disciplined delegation in the operation.

    “I praise the team that led the pilgrims to the 2012 Hajj for its foresight and the ability to pre-empt what would have been stressful and disturbing for our pilgrims.”

    Of the 1,065 pilgrims that registered with the State Pilgrims Board, the state sponsored 156, the local governments 201 and 708 were self-sponsored.

    Commissioner for Home Affairs, Culture and Tourism Sikiru Ayedun said the pilgrims displayed the Omoluabi virtue.

    He said the O’Clean initiative was transferred to the holy land, adding that Osun pilgrims introduced frequent environmental sanitation there.

    Ayedun said Osun was the only state in Nigeria where no pilgrim was deported, adding that the state government complied with the rules and regulation of the operation.

    He said the necessary logistics were provided for the pilgrims, which made the Hajj comfortable and exciting for them.

    Ayedun said: “With financial and other logistic support available to the committee, it was easy for the operation to go smoothly. The pilgrims were in high spirit from the first to the last day. Besides, our pilgrims exhibited the virtue of Omoluabi at the holy land, which distinguished them from others.”

     

  • Hajj: Nigerian pilgrims’ death toll reaches 21

    Hajj: Nigerian pilgrims’ death toll reaches 21

     

    The death toll of Nigerian pilgrims in Saudi Arabia has risen to 21 from 14, the News Agency of Nigeria reports.

    NAN quotes the National Hajj Commission’s weekly public health bulletin “No one’’ dated October 29, which showed that the male pilgrims had the highest mortality rate of 13.

    The bulletin shows that Katsina State has the highest figure of four; Sokoto, three, Kano, Lagos, Zamfara and Ogun recorded two deaths each.

    Oyo, Gombe, Yobe and the Nigerian armed forces recorded one death each.

    It also stated that 53 patients had been referred to Saudi hospitals with 39 cases recorded in Medina, four in Jeddah and 10 in Mecca.

    The bulletin states that 90 per cent of the patients had been discharged.

    “So far, no single case of delivery has been reported, however, there are two cases of spontaneous abortion reported from Misfallah Clinic in Mecca by female pilgrims from Sokoto and Adamawa states, all mothers are in satisfactory conditions,’’ it added.

    The bulletin shows that 7,496 Nigerian pilgrims have so far visited the six clinics being operated by the medical mission in Jeddah, Medina and Mecca, with common cold and hypertension topping the list of cases reported at the clinics.

    It also highlighted the problems faced during the Arafat and Muna operations, blaming the Saudi authority’s poor response to distress calls and blocked road networks to evacuate sick pilgrims by security operatives.

     

  • Hajj: Saudi Arabia deports another seven female pilgrims

    Hajj: Saudi Arabia deports another seven female pilgrims

    Saudi Arabian Authorities on Tuesday deported another seven female pilgrims for alleged incomplete travelling documents, barely two days to the Arafat.

    The pilgrims arrived the country through the Malam Aminu Kano International Airport at about 4:30am aboard a Boeing 747 Kabo Aircraft.

    An Airport official told the News Agency of Nigeria on condition of anonymity that, the pilgrims were deported from Saudi Arabia for not having complete travelling documents.

    He said the identities of the pilgrims could not be ascertained immediately.

    Effort to contact the NAHCON officials in Kano failed as they were said to be in the Holy land for the Hajj.

    It could be recalled that two weeks ago, the Saudi authorities also deported about 20 Nigerian pilgrims through the same airport for similar offence.

     

  • FCT airlifts 2,688 pilgrims

    FCT airlifts 2,688 pilgrims

    The Minister of State for Federal Capital Territory, Oloye Olajumoke Akinjide has confirmed that 2,688 Muslim pilgrims from the FCT have so far been airlifted to Saudi Arabia to perform this year’s Hajj.

    This represents 85 per cent of the 3,164 pilgrims approved for FCT for the Hajj.

    “The airlifting of Muslim pilgrims from the FCT for this year’s Hajj commenced on September 25. Six out of the flights allocated for FCT have successfully airlifted our pilgrims to Jeddah Airport from where they were transported to Madinah.

    “The sixth batch of 2012 FCT muslim pilgrims took off to Jeddah by Kabo Airline at about 4:35am on Tuesday, October 16 with 499 passengers on board. This brings the total pilgrims from FCT airlifted to Saudi Arabia to 2,688, out of 3,164 pilgrims expected to participate in this year’s Hajj,” the minister stated.

    Akinjide further noted that the two airlines approved for the FCT – Kabo and Max Airlines – were on ground at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, to airlift another batch of 400 pilgrims to the Holy land on Tuesday night.

    She added that a 5-Star Hotel with capacity for 3,200 rooms had been secured by the FCTA for the FCT pilgrims around in Masfalah, few metres away from the ground Mosque in Makkah.

    Akinjide appealed to the pilgrims from the territory to adhere strictly to the operational guidelines and the laws of the host country governing the pilgrimage.

    “I beseech you to pray for peace and unity in the country and to support our leaders in prayers. Through prayers, Nigeria and the incumbent government will accomplish great things,” she said.

    The minister had last week intervened to resolve visa hiccups for some intending pilgrims and also ensure conducive environment at the Permanent Hajj for the pilgrims.

    A special team led by the Director of FCT Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board, Alhaji Surajo Ado Faskari had been in the permanent Hajj Camp along the Abuja Airport Road since the exercise commenced on September 25, 2012.

    The team, which has been able to ensure hitch-free documentation and smooth ferrying of the pilgrims to the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, also includes the Secretary, Ministerial Monitoring Committee on 2012 FCT Hajj Operations, Alhaji Kehinde Isiaka; Special Assistant to the Minister of State on Muslim Pilgrim, Alhaji Ibraheem Ibraheem and the Public Relations Officer of the FCT Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board, Alhaji Aliyu Usman.

    The minister had on September 13, 2012 inaugurated the FCT 2012 Amirul Hajj Team led by Gen. Abdullahi Bagudu Mamman (Rtd).

    Other members of the team are: Alhaji Atiku Kurawa, Alhaji Mustapha Isma’il Khalifa and Alhaja Habeebat Babata-Sulaiman.

    The Amirul Hajj Team is to ensure that the pilgrims adhere strictly to the operational guidelines and the laws of the host country governing the pilgrimage.

    The terms of reference of the Hajj Team to include: general supervision and coordination of all activities of the entire operation from Nigeria and back to Nigeria; to ensure safety and security of pilgrims; to ensure adherence to all rules governing the Hajj Operation; to ensure effective implementation of the Administration’s policies and programmes as they affect Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board; and to submit a report on the 2012 Hajj Operations.

     

  • Reprieve for deported pilgrims

    •Saudi rescinds decision•Airlift deadline extension likely

    The Saudi authorities have agreed to accept the deported pilgrims that have valid visas.

    House Speaker Aminu Tambuwal, who led the Presidential committee to Saudi Arabia broke the news yesterday at the presidential wing of the Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport.

    According to the Speaker, the Saudi authorities is also considering Nigeria’s request for extension of the airlifting deadline.

    Tambuwal, who expressed happiness at the outcome of the meeting, also said the issue of male companion for female pilgrim was also settled as the Nigerian delegation made it known that the vexed issue is open to different interpretations from the four jurisprudences in Islam.

    He said: “Our interface with the Saudi authorities has been very successful because we had serious and deep engagement. The first good news is that all of those pilgrims who have secured valid visas are being taken back.

    Those in the delegation include the Emir of Zuru, Alhaji Sani Sami, Alhaji Aminu Dantata, Prof. Shehu Galadanchi, Chairman of Nigerian Hajj Commission (NAHCON), Alhaji Mohammed Bello and the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs II, Dr. Nurudeen Mohammed.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • SIM cards: Pilgrims decry excessive charges

    Nigerian pilgrims in Saudi Arabia have decried the excessive charges by Saudi Telecommunication Company (STC) which issued them with free SIM cards through the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria.

    The News Agency of Nigeria correspondent in Madina reports that most of the pilgrims were complaining of “crazy charges” which had limited their ability to communicate with their families in Nigeria.

    Alhaji Usman Abdullahi from Niger told NAN that he loaded 10 Riyals (about N500) worth of credit on his handset but was only able to make a call to Nigeria for one minute.

    ”I was surprised that I could not continue with the call, even though I had a balance of four Riyals; throughout the day and in the morning, my credit balance was reading zero,” he said.

    Another pilgrim, Alhaji Malami Gwandu from Kebbi said he had since stopped using the SIM card after discovering that the charges were “excessively too high.”

    Many pilgrims were also said to have stopped using the card.

    An official of STC in Madina who refused to named, said the high charges was a result of dual billing.

    ”The pilgrims is charged by STC and the donor company also charges the pilgrim effectively reducing the air time available to the affected person. We have received similar complaints from other pilgrims.”

    NAN recalls that an official of the Niger Pilgrims Welfare Board, Alhaji Mamman Mohammad had in August said in Minna that the free SIM cards had “no hidden charges.”

     

  • Kebbi, Kano, Katsina pilgrims die in Saudi Arabia

    Three Nigerian pilgrims in Saudi Arabia have died, Dr Bello Tambawwal, Head of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCO), Medina Mission, said yesterday.

    Tambawwal told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Medina that the pilgrims were from Kebbi, Kano and Katsina states.

    The Kano State pilgrim died aboard the plane conveying him and others in the inaugural flight to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

    The others died in Medina from illnesses. Tambawwal said: ‘’ Both of them were in their ripe age at the time of their death.’’

    Tambawwal said the Nigerian mission was working to ensure that medical services are always available to the pilgrims by operating two clinics in Medina, which render 24 hours services.

    He said the commission was working with the medical teams of state pilgrims’ boards to ensure that priority attention is given to the health- care of pilgrims.

    He praised the FCT, Edo, Jigawa, Osun and Kogi states for their zeal and commitment to the healthcare of their pilgrims and urged others to emulate them.

    Tambawwal also praised the states for the thorough screening of intending women pilgrims, which resulted to none carrying a pregnancy unlike in the past.

    ‘’Last year, we had nine cases of pregnancy, resulting in still birth or safe delivery of the babies, but we have no pregnancy cases this year,’’ he said.

    No fewer than 40,000 Nigerian pilgrims have been transported to Saudi Arabia for the Hajj, another official of NAHCO said in Jeddah yesterday.

    Alhaji Mohammed Girei, the NAHCON desk officer at the Jeddah International Airport, told NAN that the airport was recording “at least five flights per day’’ from Nigeria.

    He said the tempo increased following the resumption of flights from Nigeria last week after the row over the deportation of Nigerian women pilgrims.

    Girei said the deportation stopped, following measures taken by NAHCON in conjunction with state pilgrims’ boards.

    “I can confirm that there has been no new case of deportation of female pilgrims over the lack of male companion.

    “Some women initially deported have since returned to Mecca and are already performing the religious obligations,’’ he said.

    Girei expressed confidence that all 95,000 Nigerian pilgrims would be transported to Saudi Arabia before the closure of Jeddah Airport on Oct. 20.

    He commended the pilgrims and airlines for cooperating with the commission toward ensuring the success of the transportation.

  • Na’Abba blames deportation of pilgrims on inefficiency

    Na’Abba blames deportation of pilgrims on inefficiency

    The former House of Representatives’ Speaker Ghali Umar Na’Abba yesterday berated the management of Hajj affairs for the ad-hoc arraignments that led to the deportation of Nigerian pilgrims by Saudi Arabia.

    The former Speaker told reporters in Kano that impromptu arraignments were responsible for the embarrassment.

    He noted that Nigeria likes applying what he described as fire-brigade approach to issues.

    According to him, the poor management of pilgrimage reflects in the poor management of the nation’s electoral system.

    Na’Abba identified what he described as godfatherism as the bane of Nigeria’s political parties.

    The former Speaker noted that a lack of internal democracy in the parties is gradually killing the system.

    He said sycophancy has stripped Nigeria’s politics of morality, adding that all political parties in the country are guilty of the anomaly.

    Na’Abba said: “Our best brains are becoming casualties. They are the ones that understand the workings of democracy. People now engage in sycophancy so that they can remain relevant in the scheme of things.”

    The former Speaker said a high percentage of those occupying political positions in Nigeria got there through the back door.

    He said: “The situation in the country is so bad that people don’t ask who is elected but who is given a party’s ticket.”

    According to him, the intellect is no longer a requisite in Nigeria’s political arrangement.

    Na’Abba, who is a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), did not spare the party in his critical assessment.

    The former Speaker noted that in PDP’s 13 years of leading the country at the federal level, it has not been operating with a clear-cut manifesto.

    He said: “I believe that the missing link is leadership. Elections in Nigeria must be free and anybody who wins must be allowed to take his or her mandate. The issue of the absence of internal democracy portends danger in Nigeria. You see so many incompetent people in the administration of our country; from the local governments to the federal level.”

    Na’Abba accused the Olusegun Obasanjo administration of swindling the hard-earned democracy in the Fourth Republic.

    According to him, Obasanjo’s highhandedness encouraged dictatorship and “godfatherism’ in the PDP and other parties.

    He said: “In all honesty, since the inception of the Fourth Republic, in all the political parties, there is absolutely no internal democracy.

    “While I was the Speaker of the House of Representatives, I did so much to entrench internal democracy—to see to it that the phenomenon does not continue, I did a lot, including even trying to impeach Chief Obasanjo.

    “You see, anytime this problem of lack of internal democracy is being discussed, Obasanjo’s name must be mentioned. He pocketed the PDP and planted his stooges as leaders and political office holders. He also planted his stooges in other political parties and caused confusion in the system.

    “During Obasanjo’s tenure, every region in the country, including his own zone, the South-West, complained of marginalization. I aware that Obasanjo’s project was to destabilize the North; and a number of the northern political leaders are helping him to achieve this agenda,” he stated.

    The former number four citizen, regretted that 52 years after, Nigeria has continue to grapple with political and economic problems, urging Nigerians to rise up and fight against injustice and maladministration.

    According to him, the successive governments since the Fourth Republic have been extravagant in appropriating public funds, just as he revealed that what Nigeria earned within 1999 to date is threefold more than what was earned between 1960 and 1999, adding that in the last 13 years of democracy, Nigerians are getting poorer despite the huge oil revenue.

    On whether elective office holders or the party leadership are to be blamed over lack of implementation of manifestoes by political parties, Na’Abba noted that the blame is symbiotic.

    “Our political parties today operate without manifestoes because politics have been privatised. Nobody talks of party manifestoes. The failure in the system is symbiotic. It is both the failure of the President, governors and the party leadership,” Na’Abba noted