To guarantee smooth Hajj operations for efficient service delivery to pilgrims in Nigeria, the Act establishing the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) must be review, Barrister Babangida Umar has said
Speaking at an occasion organized by the Abuja zone of Association of Hajj and Umrah Operation of Nigeria (AHUON), Barrister Umar assured that conflicts of interest would be a thing of the past if the Act is review to allow the private sector drive Hajj operation
On the theme of the occasion “Hajj Reforms: Role of Tour Operators “, Barrister Babangida Umar said the total overhauling of the NAHCON’s act is long overdue, adding that the absence of representative of the private hajj operators (Tour Operators) on the board of NAHCON is an aberration.
“The Total overhaul of NAHCON’s law is long overdue.Travel agencies (Tour Operators/State Pilgrims Welfare Agencies) are not specifically represented on the board of NAHCON. There is a compelling case for amending section 3 to admit the representatives of travel Agencies since they generate 100 percent of the pilgrims and revenue. In fact NAHCON will have no business with Hajj without them,”
According to Umar , it is disturbing that NAHCON has drifted from being a regulatory body to an operator
“NAHCON should be encouraged to focus on its core mandate: policy, regulation, consular, health and licensing functions and discontinue the current practice in which it functions both as a regulator and operator on the basis of the transitional provisions of section 23 of the Act.”
Also speaking , the Managing Director of Comerel Travels, Ustaz Abubakar Siddeeq Muhammad, applauded the drafters of the NAHCON Act for recognising the travel agencies, stressing that changing it to tour operators will solve the current challenges
According to him, Nigerian pilgrims deserve the best and part of the reform is to kick out Saudi’s service providers, muassasah.
“The pilgrims deserve the best but Saudi’s service providers have been failing and henceforth we will accept that service provider from NAHCON,”
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