There are indications that the Federal Government has released a whooping N9 billion to subsidise the Hajj fares of Muslims going on holy pilgrimage.
The deadline for payment of fares for the 2024 hajj elapsed by 12am on Friday (today).
According to a Daily Trust report, both the federal and some state governments like Kano, Kebbi, Kogi, and Ogun have provided subsidies to offset the balance of funds for the exercise.
However, some intending pilgrims have continued to ask the state Muslim pilgrims’ welfare boards to refund their deposits due to their inability to raise the balance of N1.9 million announced on Sunday by the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON).
“This is as other intending pilgrims were making efforts to pay the balance by themselves.
“The federal government has released N90 billion to subsidise the 2024 pilgrimage to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, it was learnt.
“Impeccable sources within the NAHCON revealed this to Daily Trust on Thursday.
The sources, who asked not to be named, noted that without this intervention, each of the intending pilgrims would have been requested to add at least N3.5 million to the initial fare which was pegged at N4.9 million.
“A top official at the Presidency also confirmed that the federal government “actually provided some financial support for the hajj exercise”.
Recall that the NAHCON had, in December last year, fixed a minimum fare of N4.9 million per pilgrim, based on the exchange rate of N897 to a dollar by then.
In announcing the fare at that time, the commission had quoted the sum of N4,899,000 for southern pilgrims; N4,699,000 for those from the North; while pilgrims from Yola and Maiduguri centres were asked to pay N4,679,000.
Through a statement issued on Sunday by its spokesperson, Fatima Usara, the hajj commission had raised the fare by N1,918,032.91, jacking up the total amount to N6.8 million.
The commission had also said intending pilgrims had up to March 28, 2024 to pay up the extra N1.9 million for the spiritual exercise.
The NAHCON had attributed the latest hike in the hajj fare to the foreign exchange crisis which Nigeria has been battling for months.
One of our sources in NAHCON disclosed that if the commission had received up to N230 billion as support from the federal government, there would have been no need to ask intending pilgrims “to add a dime.”
The source said: “The forex crisis has caused a lot of problems. That is why the hajj commission has asked intending pilgrims to pay the extra amount of N1.9 million each. The commission actually needed N230 billion to sort out the fare differential caused by the forex crisis.
“The promise for support which was provided by the government was announced in the presence of reporters during the inauguration of the board and management of the hajj commission, which was held at the Office of the Vice President on February 28, 2024.”
The source said the NAHCON had also contacted state governors to subsidise the hajj fare for the intending pilgrims in their respective states.
“By the previous calculation, the N90 billion given by the federal government can only subsidise 19,000 intending pilgrims by ₦3.5 million. But by spreading it on 50,000 pilgrims, it reduces it to N1.9 million; meaning that the federal government has subsidised each pilgrim by ₦1.6 million before each intending pilgrim was asked to add the remaining N1.9 million,” the source further explained.
A presidency source, who also spoke to Daily Trust on Thursday, said it was true that the federal government had provided what he called a “huge financial support” for this year’s hajj exercise.
Asked to confirm whether the federal government released up to N90 billion as support for the pilgrimage, the official simply said: “that might not be far from the truth.”
He added, “Of course, the federal government has offered support for the pilgrims because the pilgrims have been lamenting.
“Normally, any support that the government is giving to any faith, whether the Christian faith or the Muslim faith, the government does not like to announce it openly so that it will not appear as if the government is favouring one faith,” he added.
When contacted, NAHCON’s spokesperson, said: “The intervention of the federal government for NAHCON can’t be quantified monetarily and we are still calculating. By the time we determine whatever the government has done, we will let everybody know.”
Kebbi State government has also paid the additional N1.9m increase in hajj fare for the state’s intending pilgrims.
The chief press secretary to the governor, Ahmed Idris, who confirmed the development said “The governor has directed that the additional hajj fare for the pilgrims be paid.”
He said over 4,875 pilgrims are expected to depart the state for this year’s hajj in Saudi Arabia.
Also, the Kogi State government has paid over N800 million to secure clearance for 460 intending pilgrims from the state to perform the 2024 holy pilgrimage to Makkah.
Ismaila Isah, the Special Adviser on Media to Governor Ahmed Ododo disclosed this to Daily Trust in Lokoja.
He said the Kogi State Hajj Commission effected full payment via its contribution in the Hajj Savings Scheme organised by NAHCON.
“Kogi State now fully cleared off the over N800 million which should have been paid by its over 460 pilgrims that are now set to perform this year’s pilgrimage to Makkah,” he said.
