The Chairman, Edo Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board, Malam Ibrahim Oyarekhua, on Tuesday said intending pilgrims in the state have up till April 21 to complete their full payment.
Oyarekhua, while speaking with newsmen in Benin, said failure to comply, would deny them the opportunity to perform the 2023 holy pilgrimage to Makkah, Saudi Arabia.
“The Hajj fare for Edo pilgrim is N2,958,000, and the deadline for the payment for the Hajj fare is April 21.
“Those who have made part payment for the fare should pay the balance, on or before April 21, to be able to take part in the Hajj operation.
“The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria has fixed the inaugural flight for pilgrims for May 21.
“In Edo state, intending pilgrims payment responses have been very encouraging following the announcement of the complete fare by NAHCON, and the state government has been very supportive in ramifications,” he said.
The board chairman noted that about 350 intending pilgrims had so far made either full or part-payment for the 2023 Hajj operation in the state, but noted, however, that the target was 400.
“Our target is 400. We have applied for additional 150 slots and during our emergency meeting, we have officially presented the request to NAHCON chairman, and he has promised to oblige us with the request,” he said.
He charged intending pilgrims who had already made part payment to complete the money within the stipulated time to enable them perform the pilgrimage.
“Also those who have not forwarded their forms, medical reports and international passports to the board, should do that, so that that the board would forward them to Saudi Arabia Portal before it is shutdown by April 30,” he advised.
The chairman said it would be dangerous for any intending pilgrim, who had made a substantial deposit and had his documents perfected, to refuse presenting it to the board for documentation.
Kaduna agency urges each pilgrim to pay N2.9m hajj fare
The Kaduna State Pilgrims Welfare Agency has urged intending pilgrims to pay N2,919,000 each for the 2023 hajj fares to avoid losing their seats.
The Executive Secretary of the agency, Dr Yusuf Arrigasiyyu, unveiled the figure at a news conference in Kaduna on Tuesday.
According to him, those who have not completed the money should do so before April 21, to avoid reallocation of their seats to others.
He said that the National Hajj Commission allocated 5,987 seats to Kaduna State which have already been exhausted, adding that the state had written for additional seat.
He noted that the agency had more than 300 requests from intending pilgrims, and it would not want to lose any seat from Kaduna State.
The executive secretary said that there were some people who would have gone for the Hajj in 2023 but couldn’t make it.
He urged the pilgrims to complete their money to meet up with the recent Hajj fare.
On the increase, Arrigassiyyu said Kaduna had one of the lowest prices compared to other states like Lagos, and because of its distance to Saudi Arabia.
“Borno has the lowest fare because of its closeness to Saudi Arabia,” the executive secretary said.
He explained that the increase in the Hajj fare was because of the Saudi Arabia’s 2030 vision where most of the houses close to the Holy Mosque are demolished for reconstruction.
”Therefore, houses are very difficult to get for Pilgrims to be accommodated in that area,” he said.
Arrigasiyyu, however, said that the agency had begun enlightenment of Pilgrims in all the local government areas in the state.
“We are working to ensure that the issues raised last year and this year are addressed before commencement of airlift by May,” he said.
The executive secretary thanked the commission and other stakeholders for the necessary support in ensuring that the Pilgrims are successfully airlifted from Nigeria to Saudi Arabia.
