For anyone conversant with the conversations coming out of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria, the narratives are mostly negative. Stories about the activities of the commission, popularly referred to as NAHCON, are regularly undistinguished. Yes, the reports in the last couple of years have been undesirable and unpleasant to the ear of the patriot. Going back to the time when Barrister Abdullahi Mukhtar Muhammad was the Chairman, the commission has been regular in the news for bad news. It took the court to settle the issue of terrible allegations of impropriety put against Abdullahi by an activist called I. G Wala. After a lengthy litigation, the activist was sentenced, and the matter was silenced.
Before Barrister Muktar Abdullahi was Malam Mohammed Musa Bello, who was the Chairman of the commission from 2007 to 2015. His tenure was equally tainted by the accusations of ineffectiveness, occasioned by the lack of significant or desired results as laid out. Intermittently, the commission is visited by brouhaha, often on matters of financial management. Hardly a year passes, especially towards the primary assignment of the commission, before one scandal or the other breaks out. Nahcon is almost synonymous with the metaphor, “in the eye of the storm”. It is the permanent residence of turmoil and uncertainty, where things are quiet or peaceful, but where the potential for danger or disruption looms high on the horizon.
Shortly after becoming President, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu announced the appointment of Jalal Arabi as the new chairman of the commission, but before he could even settle down for the business of the commission, the same President announced his removal. Although no reason was given for the sack, reports have it that Mr Arabi was being investigated by the EFCC, for allegedly misappropriating funds released by the federal government for hajj, including the N90 billion hajj subsidy for 2024. Hajj is a journey of faith and worship, involving specific rites and rituals performed at various holy sites. It is an annual pilgrimage to Mecca, and one of the five pillars of Islam, which Muslims are expected to make at least once in their lifetime, provided they are physically and financially able. And the National Hajj Commission was established to make the discharge of that task easier for the Nigerian Muslims.
With the relief of Jalal, came the appointment of Professor Abdullahi Saleh Usman, a highly respected scholar who boasts of an impressive academic background, having earned credentials from two prestigious Islamic institutions: the University of Madinah and Peshawar University in Pakistan. But still the negative narratives did not cease to come out of the commission. Headlines like, EFCC detains NAHCON chair, other officials, over alleged mismanagement of hajj funds, were all over the pages of the newspapers and magazines. And as usual, the accusations were centered on the NAHCON officials’ propensity to overpayments of hajj operational costs to themselves, unjustified cash withdrawals, and other allegations.
One of such stories was captioned thus: Fresh N5 billion budget padding scandal has rocked the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON). The story quickly sparked outrage among stakeholders, compelling a call for an urgent investigation by the anti-corruption agencies. While that was going on, again, pursuant to the preparation for this year’s hajj, the Forum of Chief Executive Officers of State Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Boards, Agencies, and Commissions, raised another alarm, saying that thousands of Nigerian intending pilgrims may not perform the 2025 hajj, because the Hajj Commission, Professor Abdullahi Saleh Usman, has cancelled the Mashariq contract. NAHCON entered into a contract with Mashariq al Dhahabia, to provide services for Nigerian Pilgrims for the 2025 Hajj.
Because of some hitches, and poor handling of the issue, perhaps, by the media management team of the commission, the story was skewed unfavourably against it, and there was hysteria everywhere. Also, when Saudi Arabia temporarily suspended Umrah, business and family visit visas for citizens of 14 countries, including India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh, the story was again twisted to look as if Nigeria was the primary target. And all blames were placed on the doorsteps of NAHCON and it’s leadership.
Even this morning, a new story has commenced circulating, saying that NAHCON is facing a visa racketeering scandal, where some officials are accused of acquiring hajj visas, in the name of the commission, and selling them to intending pilgrims that are desperate, at exorbitant rates.
In his famous song, Stealing In The Name Of Jah, the popular reggae musician, Max Romeo, accused some religious leaders of looting in the name of the Lord. Max said:
“Stealing, stealing, stealing.
Stealing, in the name of the Lord.
My father’s house of worship
Has become a den of thieves
Stealing in the name of the Lord.
They fed our mothers with sour grapes
And set our teeth on edge.
Stealing in the name of the Lord.
Strike the hammer of justice
And set my people free.
Strike the hammer of justice
Or let my people be”.
As a country, Nigeria has people who love and support the interests of the country. And the need to let them be is there. These people are ever ready to prove their loyalty and enthusiasm, by defending and advocating its policies, including the mission and vision of NAHCON. Looking at the volume of hullabaloo that is habitually hovering over the commission, it is important for it to have a rejig, at its media management strategies. The media handlers of the chairman and the commission itself, need better handling themselves. Yes, the confusions coming out of the commission, over infamous issues, are becoming, “Islamically” unbecoming.
