Ogun Gets 1,353 Slots For Hajj
The Ogun State Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board yesterday said necessary machinery is being set in motion to utilize the 1,353 slots allocated to it by the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) for the 2017 Holy Pilgrimage to Makkah and Medinah .
The Board Chairman, Dr. Ishaq Yusuf, who disclosed this in Abeokuta, Ogun State explained that the increment would give room for the board to accommodate more intending pilgrims from the state as against the previous years.
Yusuf said, the increase in the allocation was not by accident, but was as a result of the decision by the Saudi Arabia Authorities to restore the 20 percent global allocation that had been slashed in 2013.
He added that Nigeria’s allocation was reduced from 95,000 to 76,000 due to the on-going renovation at the Grand Mosque and other sites in the country as at that period.
“The pilgrims can now heave a sigh of relief since the State’s slot has been increased from 1,095 to 1,353. The management of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has assured that the facilities and transport services of the country have been upgraded to meet the needs of the pilgrims across the world,” Yusuf said.
He advised all intending pilgrims to visit the Board’s headquarters for purchase of the 2017 hajj form, emphasising that those who had already obtained the form could begin payment of their hajj fares.
