A new financial controversy is emerging at the National Hajj Commission over the alleged seizure of more than N2.8 billion belonging to travel agents.
This was disclosed in a letter dated August 24
sent by travel agents under the umbrella of the Association for Hajj and Umrah Operators of Nigeria to the newly appointed NAHCON Chairman, Abdullahi Usman, according to The Punch.
The letter was in response to an advertisement by NAHCON inviting licensed agents to apply for travel slots for the 2025 Hajj operations.
In it, AHUON’s national president, Alhaji Yahaya Nasidi Danbare urged the chairman to finalise the accounts for the last Hajj operations before proceeding with plans for 2025.
According to the travel agents, NAHCON owes approximately 114 agents N25 million each, totaling about N2.8 billion in deposit payments.
These funds are typically provided to demonstrate the agents’ financial capacity to manage the pilgrims they will transport for the Hajj.
Additionally, the agents accused NAHCON of withholding N1 billion from 200 agents as initial deposits during the 2023 Hajj operations and failing to account for an additional N1 billion in service charges collected from pilgrims.
These allegations were central to the removal of the commission’s former chairman, Jalal Arabi, who was questioned by anti-corruption agencies.
Meanwhile, in response to the financial mismanagement concerns, the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, has called for a complete overhaul of NAHCON during a recent visit by a presidential panel investigating the commission.
The AHUON president, in the latest letter, praised the zeal of the commission to open a new book for the 2025 Hajj operation on time but requested the payment of his member’s funds before another operation.
The letter, which was titled, RE: application for 2025 hajj licence and slot allocation for travel agencies reads partly, “Permit me to refer to your advertorial in The Nation Newspaper of Saturday, 24th of August 2024 with the above caption.
“In an ideal situation, this could have caused celebrations from tour operators, because, for the first time, you are kick-starting the Hajj processes early enough.
“However, while we appreciate the zeal of the commission to open a new book for the 2025 Hajj operation on time, we feel it is important to draw its attention to the fact that the book for the 2024 Hajj has not been properly closed as far as tour operators are concerned.
“Therefore, our expectation was that the commission will address all pending issues relating to the 2024 operations before the invitation to bid for the 2025 Hajj license.”
Danbare added, “In fact, a three-week’ timeline was given by the management of the Commission. It is, therefore, strange to us that the commission will place a public notice for a new bid while the pending issues have not been concluded. For your information, sir, there are some of our members that have not been paid their 2023 caution deposits of N5,000,000.00 (five million naira only). “
The association also requested a N20m share of the 2024 development fee paid by pilgrims to the commission.
“As we speak, the commission has not taken any action in that regard, and we are aware the Mu’assasah has also approved the refund for the 2024 tent a service failure.
“Refund of development levy. Fourthly, on the 24th of July 2024, we wrote a letter of reminder for the payment of N20,000,000.00 (twenty million naira only) being 20 per cent of the association’s share from the 2023 development levy as agreed and graciously approved by the last management,” the agents noted.
