From Paul Orude Bauchi
Bauchi State Governor Bala Muhammad has agreed subsidies of 50 percent of the additional increment of the 2024 Hajj exercise fare for the intending pilgrims from the State.
The Commissioner for ReligiousAffairs and Community Orientation, Yakubu Ibrahim Hamza disclosed this while briefing journalists at the Government House, Bauchi.
Hamza explained that the State Government will pay a subsidy of ₦959,000 for the 1652 intending pilgrims from Bauchi State totaling over ₦2.5 billion to bring succor to them in the Hajj exercise.
The Commissioner explained that benefiting intending pilgrims included those who had already paid the increment.
He said intending pilgrims who are yet commit the development as well as those who were being awarded a Hajj slots by the state government would also enjoy the subsidies.
In a remark, the Executive Secretary of the Bauchi State Pilgrims Welfare Board ,Abdulrahman Ibrahim Idris explained that intending pilgrims who had would registered and paid the initial total deposit of N4.7 million and N4.5 million with the State Pilgrims Board will now deposit ₦959k out of the N1.9 million increase.
It will be recalled that the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) had last week increased the fare for this year’s pilgrimmage to Saudi Arabia by N1, 918,032.91, setting a deadline of March 28, 2024, and attributing the increase to the forex crisis the country has been going through for months
The Commission also set March 28, 2024 as deadline for intending pilgrims to make their payments. It attributed the increase in fare to the foreign exchange crisis rocking the country.
NAHCON had initially pegged the fare for this year’s pilgrimage at N4.9m, but the commission is now asking those who have paid the initial amount to add a balance of N1.9m raising the amount to N6.8m.