Officials deny lack of due process, poor staff welfare report at NAHCON

From Mustapha Adamu

Some senior officials of the National Hajj Commission, NAHCON, have dismissed various allegations levelled against the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the commission, Abdullahi Saleh Usman.
Some board members and commissioners accused Usman of nepotism, lack of due process in decision-making, and poor staff welfare.
Also, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had launched a probe of some top officials of the commission over alleged misconduct in the 2025 Hajj exercise under the former chairman.
Since the commencement of the probe, some individuals have petitioned the anti-graft agencies, accusing the current chairman of abuse of due process, poor staff welfare and corrupt practices.
However, official correspondences sighted by this newspaper indicated that Mr Usman- a Professor and Islamic scholar always consults relevant officers and follows due process.
He also questioned some requests and ensured they were within budgetary provision.
One of the documents sighted by our correspondent dated May 10, 2025, revealed how the ACAO [meals and entertainment] requested through the director of administration the payment of N41,280,000 as an Eid-Kabir welfare package for 161 staff who did not participate in the 2025 Hajj operations.
The memo, which was addressed to the Director of Administration, emphasised that staff welfare was a key tradition to boost efficiency and staff welfare.
It also explained that the beneficiaries include 71 NAHCON staff, 5 casual staff, 51 NSCDC personnel, 9 corps members and IT students and 25 cleaners.
It recommended that each beneficiary be credited in line with an attached template.
The request was subsequently processed through the Commissioner, Policy, Personnel, Management and Finance (PPMF), and later approved by Mr Usman after confirming that the expenditure was captured in the commission’s budget.
Another document showed that the NAHCON chairman approved N11,340,000 as Duty Tour Allowance, air tickets, and other benefits for six board members scheduled to travel to Minna, Maiduguri, Kano, South-West, South-South, and South-East zones to supervise the airlifting of pilgrims to Saudi Arabia.
Similarly, on October 14, 2024barely two few months after assuming office—Mr Usman approved N12,344,000 for 29 staff training at the Association of National Accountants of Nigeria (ANAN).
The training is under the mandatory continuing professional development courses of the commission.
The training fees and other training were approved, too, following due process and recommendation from the Commissioner, PPMF.