Friday, 29th March 2024
To guardian.ng
Search
Breaking News:

Payment of Hajj fare gets July 6 deadline

By Kabir Alabi Garba
05 July 2016   |   3:49 am
The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) has therefore tasked the State Pilgrims Welfare Boards, Agencies, and Commissions in charge of the holy pilgrimage exercise to facilitate the payment...
Muslim pilgrims circle counterclockwise Islam's holiest shrine, the Kaaba, at the Grand Mosque in the Saudi holy city of Mecca, during the 2015 Hajj. AFP PHOTO / MOHAMMED AL-SHAIKH

Muslim pilgrims circle counterclockwise Islam’s holiest shrine, the Kaaba, at the Grand Mosque in the Saudi holy city of Mecca, during the 2015 Hajj. AFP PHOTO / MOHAMMED AL-SHAIKH

Intending pilgrims for this year’s hajj exercise have until July 6, 2016 to pay up the balance of the hajj fare or risk the forfeiture of their slots.

The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) has therefore tasked the State Pilgrims Welfare Boards, Agencies, and Commissions in charge of the holy pilgrimage exercise to facilitate the payment by the pilgrims from all the 36 states of the federation.

The deadline, according to the statement issued by the Commission’s Head of Media, Alhaji Uba Mana, was informed by the Saudi authority’s decision not to allow access into its Visa Portal unless every payment is duly completed to the service providers in the Kingdom.

Alhaji Mana therefore, urged the chief executives of the 36 State Boards including the FCT and Armed Forces to strive to comply with the directive before the expiration of the deadline, noting that failure may deny none-compliant state access to processing Hajj Visa and subsequently jeopardise the airlift arrangement that is expected to begin in the first week of August.

Other resolutions adopted at the end of the joint meeting with the officials of NAHCON and state welfare boards held in Makkah, Saudi Arabia, included the harmonization of catering service providers in Makkah, Madinah and the Masha’ir, return of un-utilised Hajj slots, as well as, unclaimed pilgrims refund to the Commission.

In this article

0 Comments