Lagos, Ogun, Osun, Ondo, Oyo and Ekiti states have appealed to the new Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON), Mr Jalal Ahmed Arabi, to release their 2022 hajj refunds withheld by his predecessor Mr Zikirullah Kunle Hassan.

The Southwest states revealed this ina a petition addressed to Mr Arabi.

The petition was signed by pilgrims’ secretaries Alhaji D.B Salau (Ogun), Alhaji Onipede Saheed (Lagos), Alhaji Omoniyi Mohammed M (Ondo), Alhaji Egbeyemi Ishaq A (Ekiti), Alhaja Khadijat J. Olanipekun (Oyo), and Alhaji Murithadar Fakunle (Lagos).

They explained to the new NAHCON boss how Mr Zikirullah “unjustifiably” excluded them from the 2022 hajj refunds for services that were not rendered or rendered unsatisfactorily.

Mr Zikirullah, who was CEO of NAHCON from January 2020 to October 2023, conducted two annual hajj operations.

Mr Zikrullah, the petitioners said, had “appropriately” refunded other states in the country, “leaving out states from Southwest without due justification for such.”

The hajj refunds include those to intending pilgrims who paid hajj fare but didn’t travel, pilgrims who travelled to hajj but returned using private means, those arising from penalties from erring service providers, and for services not rendered or rendered unsatisfactorily.

The Hajj commission announced N108 million (500,000 Saudi riyals) as refunds for services not rendered or rendered poorly in 2022 hajj.

The poor services or services not rendered at all category comprises feeding and accommodation in Makkah; feeding, accommodation, and number of days spent in Madinah; feeding, beddings, toiletries, cooling system, sanitation, and water supply in Masha’er (Muna and Arafat); feeding at Jeddah airport; transport routing – Madinah- Makkah-Jeddah, and Jeddah- Madinah- Makkah – Jeddah.

In 2023, the commission created the Inspectorate, Evaluation and Compliance Unit saddle with the responsibility of monitoring and computing these refunds.

The intending pilgrims, who paid but didn’t perform the hajj, comprise a refund for pilgrims who miss the Hajj due to medical screening, especially pregnant women; pilgrims who miss the Hajj due to ill- health; and lastly pilgrims who die before the airlift begins.

These categories were not refunded in 2022 and 2023 by Mr Zikirullah and there was no money left for their refund at the time he was sacked. However, this category was fully refunded in 2017, 2018 and 2019.

In 2022 hajj, a total of 42,000 Nigerian pilgrims (30,000 through states and 12,000 through private tour operators) performed the hajj which was marred by multifaceted challenges ranging from airlift, accommodation, feeding, local transport, among others.

The six states of the Southwest had a total of 3,422 pilgrims: Lagos (1,562), Osun (460), Ogun (497), Ondo (191), Ekiti (83), and Oyo (629) for the 2022 hajj.

NAHCON’s spokesperson, Fatima Sanda Usara, told journalists in Abuja that NAHCON under Zikirullah had disbursed the 2022 hajj refunds to states that were qualified.

“States with genuine cases were paid,” Mrs Usara said, adding that “some states deliberately don’t fill the funds for refunds, where they do, they leave the space meant for describing the quality of services blank. ‘That is one of the challenges we are facing. Some of these states only come up with claims after they see genuine states being paid.”

When contacted, the executive secretaries of the Southwest states said they have not yet receive the hajj refunds for 2022 hajj from NAHCON. (Daily Trust)

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