The Nation Newspaper

Tag: pilgrims

  • Kaduna pilgrims board to begin Hajj registration tomorrow 

    The Kaduna State Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board has said it will tomorrow begin the registration of intending pilgrims for this year’s Hajj to Saudi Arabia in the 23 local government areas.

    The intending pilgrims are to deposit a minimum of N800,000 and a maximum of N1.2 million, pending the formal announcement of the Hajj fare by the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria.

    A statement at the weekend by the board’s spokesman Yunusa Muhammad Abdullahi advised intending pilgrims to present themselves physically during the registration because registration by proxy would not be allowed.

    The statement quoted the board’s Overseer, Imam Hussaini Sulaiman Tsoho Ikara, as warning that intending female pilgrims would only be registered when they area accompanied by male guardians (Mahram) in line with Saudi Arabian government’s regulations.

    The statement added: “Imam Hussaini, who addressed the committees set up for the registration of the intending pilgrims on the premises of the board, warned them to adhere strictly to the registration guidelines.”

  • Pilgrims pray for economic recovery

    Over 300 pilgrims from Lagos State in Jerusalem yesterday pray to God to help the nation make a quick recovery from the economic recession.

    The pilgrims, who visited most of the sites where Jesus Christ carried out his ministry while on earth, also prayed for peace and prosperity.

    A pilgrim, Reverend James Ogunfolaji, said the exercise was important for Nigerians to unite and pray against the evil affecting the development.

    He said he was astonished to see Israel so developed considering that the place was located on a desert.

    Ogunfolaji said: “What I have seen here has propelled the need for me to pray more for our country. I saw mass farming activities even when they don’t have the right vegetation. These people produce what they eat here in desert but our country is so blessed with natural and human resources yet we still depend on foods imported from other countries.”

    He said there is no way the nation can get it right if it continues like this, noting that not only will the nation remains underdeveloped but the future would be ruined.

    Lagos State Health Service Commission Permanent Secretary Dr Jemilade Longe, told our reporter that prayer for the nation was part of the arrangement for the exercise considering the various challenges in the country.

    He said the experience has been quite fulfilling physical, spiritual and socially.

    “Pilgrimage exercise gives one the opportunity to see all what written in the Bible and that gives a lot of confidence for those things that are yet to be fulfilled in the bible.

    “We have come across so many people from different countries and different denominations and we are all just one trying to project the image of Nigeria,” He added.

    Longe, who said he had visited Israel before on a training programme, said there was a lot that Nigeria has to learn from Israel.

    “I must say that this is my third time of visiting. The first two times I was here as a participant in training. But this is a deeply spiritual one.

    “We look at the significant events of the sites visited and use it as prayer point for ourselves and critically for the country knowing full well that it is scriptural that we should pray for our country”, he said.

    He also added that the experience was also very significant for Lagos State in the area of tourism.

    “Our Governor has done a lot to boost the tourism potentials of the state and by coming here it will give us opportunity to learn more on how to drive tourism in the state,” Longe said.

  • Lagos screens 600 intending pilgrims

    The Lagos State government has begun administrative and medical screening for about 600 intending  Jerusalem pilgrims.

    Secretary of the State Christian Pilgrims Welfare Board Mrs. Olayinka Oye-Bamgbose, who spoke at the Chapel of Christ the Light Church, Alausa, venue of the exercise, enjoined pilgrims to make the best use of the opportunity.

    She said the journey to Israel was not for tourism, but a religious exercise to enable them to see the things the Bible documented for spiritual growth.

    According to her, “pilgrimage is not for tourism, but a journey to walk in the footsteps of Christ.

    ” Whatever it is that was read in the Bible comes alive during this journey.”

    She said preparations have been put in place to take care of the pilgrims, adding that a team of medical personnel are on ground to handle any health challenges.

    “As you can see, part of what is going on here is health screening for pilgrims and this will further tell you that we are prepared for the journey.”

  • Kogi pilgrims’ board chair handed over to DSS

    Chairman of the Kogi State Pilgrims Welfare Board, Sadiq Mohammed Rabiu, has been handed over to the Department of State Services (DSS) following allegations of fraud and inhuman treatment of pilgrims during the Hajj.

    Director General of Governor Yahaya Bello’s Media and Publicity team, Mr. Kingsley Fanwo, in a statement yesterday, reiterated the governor’s determination to fight corruption.

    He said Bello would not spare any corrupt public official.

    According to Fanwo, Rabiu was handed over to the DSS following allegations of fraud and other issues against him.

    He added that Rabiu was allegedly fraudulent  and showed blatant disregard for the welfare of the state’s contingent to Saudi Arabia, among others.

    According to him, the governor set up an investigative panel to probe his activities after receiving complaints from pilgrims.

    The statement reads: “Alhaji Sadiq Mohammed Rabiu’s travails are not unconnected with allegations of fraud and inhuman treatment of pilgrims in this year’s Hajj brought against him.

    “It would be recalled that the governor made adequate provision for this year’s pilgrims but surprisingly, the pilgrims were subjected to dehumanising conditions.

    “Consequently, upon receipt of complaints of fraud against him, Governor Yahaya Bello set up an investigative panel to probe the board’s activities in relation to this year’s Hajj and startling revelations came out.

    “It has been established that pilgrims were kept in substandard hotels in Mecca, prompting many of them to sleep outside the hotel. Also, many of the pilgrims were shortchanged by Rabiu.

    “His decision to discreetly include his relations and friends on the pilgrimage, while hiding same from government, is also at variance with the policy of the administration, which places emphasis on accountability, probity and transparency.

    “In view of this and the determination not to protect any corrupt office holder, the governor has ordered the immediate suspension of the chairman and he has since been handed over to the Department of State Services (DSS) for further investigations and possible prosecution, if enough grounds are found for that.”

  • 24,681 pilgrims return from Hajj

    The National Hajj Commission for Nigeria (NAHCON) has said 24,681 pilgrims have returned to Nigeria since the operation began on September 17.

    The commission said yesterday in Makkah, Saudi Arabia, that the pilgrims left in 55 flights.

    According to NAHCON, pilgrims from 17 states have  been taken to various operational airports in Nigeria.

    Commission Chairman Abdullahi Mohammed said he was confident Nigerian Muslim pilgrims will all be back home before the October 17 deadline.

  • Two Kebbi pilgrims die in Saudi Arabia

    Kebbi Pilgrims Welfare Board has announced the death of two pilgrims from the state during the just concluded 2016 Hajj in Saudi Arabia.

    Alhaji Aliyu Jajirma, Secretary, state Publicity Committee on 2016 Hajj, confirmed this in a telephone interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) from Mecca on Monday.

    Jajirma, who is also the state Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Journalists [NUJ], however, did not disclose the names of the pilgrims, but said the two, male and female, died in hospital as a result of brief illness.

    He said that the affected pilgrims, who were b  buried in the Holy city of Mecca, hailed from Maiyama and Augie Local Government Areas of the state.

    According to him, wife of the state governor, Dr Zainab Bagudu, who also performed the Hajj, had commisserated with the families of the deceased.

    NAN reports that a total of 4,107 pilgrims from Kebbi performed the 2016 Hajj in Saudi Arabia.

  • Lagos pilgrims to return next week

    Lagos pilgrims to return next week

    LAGOS State hajj pilgrims will returned from Saudi Arabia next week, according to official manifest of departure released by its welfare board.

    The manifest, which was pasted in the three hotels accommodating the pilgrims in Makkah, showed that the pilgrims from Lagos State will board on 27, 28 and 29 of this month.

    Addressing the pilgrims on the plan, the state’s Amirul Hajj and Commissioner for Home Affairs, Dr. Abdulhakeem Abdullateef, explained that two flights would convey pilgrims from Makkah to Lagos on each of the three days.

    Abdullateef ordered free distribution of 32-kilogramme bags branded by the government to the pilgrims.

    This, The Nation learnt, is to ensure that possible delay of pilgrims is not entertained.

    The commissioner urged the pilgrims to abide by the rules and regulations guiding the loading of luggage, stressing that anyone caught violating the approved 32 kilogrammes, his or her load would be rejected.

    Abdullateef said: “Now that you have successfully taken part in this year’s Hajj, I congratulate you all and pray that Allah accept all your worship. It is time for us to start preparing for the return trip back to Lagos. All the pilgrims would soon return home in no distance time.”

    The  Amirul Hajj warned against inclusion of contrabands in their luggage.

    “Remember that forbidden items in your luggage attracts serious penalty. Do not include inflammatory objects and Zamzam water in your bags. Anyone found guilty would be dealt with according to the rules and regulations of the concerned authorities,” he said.

    According to him, a business network programme that will serve as a platform for the pilgrims to network with one another for business and contacts has been designed.

    Abdullateef said the pilgrims would participate in a programme to x-ray the activities of this year’s hajj operations.

    He maintained that the programme aimed at giving the pilgrims the opportunity to know some of the areas where the state needed to improve on.

  • 3,405 Hajj pilgrims leave from Niger

    Three thousand, four hundred and five pilgrims, as well as officials from Niger State, yesterday left the Minna International Airport to Saudi Arabia.

    Governor Abubakar Sani Bello enjoined the pilgrims, the last batch, to avoid acts capable of tarnishing the country’s image, especially trafficking in drugs and kolanuts.

    “You must be warned of the stringent Saudi Arabia laws. You must adhere strictly to the laid down rules and regulation while in the holy land; avoid anything inimical or detrimental to the collective aspirations of our state and country,” he said.

    Bello enjoined them to pray for the peace and socio-economic progress of the state and country.

    “Nigeria is going through challenges; I enjoin you to pray for the peace and socio-economic progress of Niger state and Nigeria.

    ‘’You must dedicate the period to prayers for yourself, your family, community, state and Nigeria,” he added.

  • Lagos pilgrims visit historical sites in Makkah

    Pilgrims from Lagos State have commenced rounds of visitation to different historic sites in the Saudi Arabia.

    The visits, the Commissioner for Home Affairs, who doubles as the state’s Amirul Hajj, Dr AbdulHakeem AbdulLateef, said, was aimed at exposing the pilgrims to sites they have read in the Quran and other Islamic literatures.

    He listed such sites as Mount Arafat, Jabali- Tur, Muna, Musdalifa, Jabal Nur and Cave Hira among others.

    Pilgrims all over the world are expected converge on the Mount Arafat for their hajj to be valid.

    The mount Arafat was historical in the lives of Muslim faithful as it was a place where Adam met his wife, Hawau (Eve) after they have missed each other when they flouted directives of Allah from eating the forbidden fruits.

    Explaining the government’s decision, AbdulLateef said: “It is important to expose our pilgrims to these sites. The idea was to create an opportunity for them to have first-hand information about the places they have heard about. With this visits, the pilgrims have seen by themselves places where some Prophets spent their lives.

    “The visitations also become imperative with a view to acquitting the pilgrims with the historical sites where hajj activities will take place.”

  • 6,000 pilgrims leave from Sokoto

    Six thousand pilgrims were at the weekend transported to Saudi Arabia from Sokoto International Airport.

    Zonal Coordinator Alhaji Abubakar Kaoje spoke during an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).

    He said the pilgrims, from Sokoto and Zamfara States left in 12 flights.

    Kaoje hailed the conduct of the pilgrims during the screening exercise and other departure procedures.