•As Association makes fresh demands of NAHCON
By Musa Baba Adamu
The two- day Abuja zone of the Association for Hajj and Umrah Operators of Nigeria (AHUON) has ended with fat reaching recommendations.
The 2nd annual zonal conference drew participants from various stakeholders from public and private bodies.
AHUON, in its communique signed by the National President, Abdulateef Ekundayo, made some fresh demands from National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON).
While it appreciated President Bola Tinubu for its support to the Nigerian Pilgrims, it to always extend such goodwill to Nigerian Pilgrims under the private Tour Operators too.
The communique also agreed that the current NAHCON Act, calling for reform that would make private operators its flagship as envisioned by the vision 2030 reforms of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
“Therefore, going further any attempts to review the NAHCON Act should capture the private sector initiatives led by AHUON, and its members should have representations On the NAHCON Board.
“The conference noted with concern the continue delay of NAHCON to close the Books of 2024 Hajj, from the Tour operators’ perspective. This includes refunds of all monies owed its members by the Commission before the opening of a new Bid for Hajj 2025.
“Members were therefore unanimous in calling for a stay of action on the Bidding for the 2025 Hajj license until NAHCON reconcile its accounts with the Tour Operators and pay all refunds outstanding, including the 2023 and 2024 caution deposits and those of services not rendered over the years.
“The conference found it appalling, the refusal of the NAHCON to respond to the Association’s plea to intervene on the issue of epileptic Umrah visa regime from the Saudi Ministry of Hajj.
“The issue at stake calls for direct government intervention, but to our dismay, the Commission has not acknowledged the receipt of our letter stating our demands.
“Members frown at the practice where Tour Operators’ allocation is been shared with other agencies of government against the good intentions of the Ministry of Hajj in promoting private sector participation in Hajj.
“It therefore call upon the Commission to refrain from further encroachment on the 20,000 slots allocation to the private Tour companies. The slots are meant for our members and should always be applied as such.
“There was a popular demand at the conference for change of the service provider (Ithra AlKhair) that has remained a perennial failure in providing optimum service to our pilgrims over the years or in the alternative, the engagement of multiple service providers as it’s being practiced by other countries.
“AHUON was charged by participants at the conference to imbibe professionalism and aspire for charter status to enable it consolidate on current achievement of ridding the industry of quackery.
