The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) has announced that they will request for more slots for the 2024 Hajj after having exhausted the 95,000 allotted slots for the 2023 pilgrimage. This follows the conclusion of the last flight carrying Nigerian pilgrims that passed through State Pilgrim Welfare Boards. The Chairman of NAHCON, Zikrullah Hassan, expressed his gratitude to Allah for the success of the operation without any mishaps.
Hassan also commended the airliners for their patience and resilience in the face of various challenges encountered during the airlift exercise. He noted that despite the challenges, all registered pilgrims were successfully airlifted to Saudi Arabia. This is the first time in a decade that NAHCON has exhausted the allotted number of Hajj slots, and its success is a testament to the professionalism, diligence and commitment of the NAHCON team.
According to Hassan, the Nigerian Ambassador to Saudi Arabia has already started the process of acquiring more slots for next year’s pilgrimage. He revealed that during the recent meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC), the Ambassador expressed NAHCON’s interest in acquiring more slots for the 2024 Hajj.
Hassan described this year’s Hajj operation as remarkable, stating that every registered pilgrim would be in Saudi Arabia for the Arafat. He also noted that aside from the chartered aircraft for tour operators’ pilgrims, another flight containing only commission officials would take off on Saturday by 2pm.
The chairman of NAHCON ended by declaring NAHCON’s commitment to bringing the pilgrims back to Nigeria without any hassle; a promise which can be attributed to the diligence of the organisation. The commission will start strategising on how to achieve a smooth return for every registered pilgrim while wishing for the peace and prosperity of Nigeria while in Saudi Arabia for the pilgrimage.
