The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) has announced that private companies would henceforth begin to handle Hajj and Umrah operations in states.
Daily News 24 reports that this was revealed on Wednesday during a meeting between the newly appointed NAHCON Chairman, Professor Abdullahi Saleh Usman and members of the Association of Hajj and Umrah Operators in Nigeria (AHOUN).
The president of AHOUN, Ikiruma Muhammad informed BBC Hausa of the association’s willingness to take charge of the 2025 Hajj exercise.
This, according to them, was in order to address the monumental challenges that were encountered during the 2024 Hajj exercise.
Also read: EFCC detains NAHCON officials over alleged N90bn fraud
Mr Muhammad said members of his association would take over the 2025 Hajj logistics with openness and transparency, as they conducted some part of the 2024 Hajj exercise.
It could be recalled that on the 19, August, 2024, President Bola Tinubu removed the Chairman/CEO of National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) Jalal Arabi following his arrest by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Mr Arabi was being investigated by the anti-graft commission over alleged misappropriation of N90 billion Hajj subsidy released to the NAHCON by the federal government.
President Tinubu subsequently replaced Mr Arabi with Professor Abdullahi Saleh Usman.
By Nabil Jibril
