Despite repeated assurances, the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria, NAHCON, has resorted to charging an additional $100 from each intending pilgrim.
Recall that the local air carriers had earlier demanded an increase per pilgrim as an additional cost occasioned by the additional flight time to Saudi Arabia following the closure of the Sudan air space.
Consequently, an $250 extra charge was agreed between the carriers and the commission after the negotiations.
The commission said the Federal Government had waived the remaining 35 percent of aviation charges (having waived 65 percent earlier), which translates to $55.
“The liability of the remaining $195 will be borne by 75,000 pilgrims which is calculated at $117 per pilgrim (one hundred and seventeen Dollars),” the commission said in a letter dated May 18 and signed by NAHCON chairman and CEO, Zikirullah Kunle Hassan.
Copied to state governors, Minister of State for the FCT and the executive secretaries of the state pilgrims’ boards, the letter said the commission would deduct $100 each from the $800 Basic Traveling Allowance, BTA, of the pilgrims.
Parts of the letter reads: “The Commission resolved to reduce the Basic Travelling Allowance (BTA) for 2023 Haj Pilgrims to the sum of $700 (Seven hundred Dollars) as against Eight Hundred Dollars ($800.00) previously provided.”
This newspaper had earlier reported plans by the commission to deduct the fare increase from the pilgrims’ BTA.
But on May 13, Mr Hassan had denied the claim, saying that the commission would not ask pilgrims to make any increment.
The air ticket component of the 2023 hajj fare for northern states was pegged at $1,780 (N826, 810 at N464.5/$ official exchange rate). While the southern states pay $1, 950 (N898,000).
With the $250 increment now, the flight ticket will rise to $2,030 (N942,935) for northern pilgrims, and $2,200 (N1,021,900) for southern pilgrims.
However, findings by this newspaper revealed that an average return ticket from Abuja to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia through Egypt Air cost N887,502; while the same return ticket cost N538,841 on Ethiopian Airlines.
Aviation experts told this newspaper that this makes Nigerian hajj flight ticket one of the most expensive in the world.
In the letter, NAHCON said all the BTA of the 75,000 pilgrims would be deducted and shared to the four local airlines – Max Air, Air Peace, Azman Air and Aero Contractors- that refused to sign the airlift agreement because of the Sudan conflict.
The Saudi Arabian-designated airline, Flynas, which was the only carrier that signed the agreement despite the conflict in Sudan.
Surprisingly, the airline was excluded from the sharing even though it’s over 28,000 allocated pilgrims from Lagos, Ogun, Osun, Oyo, Niger, Zamfara, Sokoto and Kebbi states would be affected by the $100 deduction.
It was reliably gathered that state executive secretaries of the nine states allocated to Flynas are planning a showdown with NAHCON tomorrow Monday.
A source told our correspondent that executive secretaries vowed to resist the plan by the commission to deduct their pilgrims’ BTA and give to other airlines that won’t airlift their pilgrims.
Despite all this confusion, Hajj industry experts have expressed fears that the 2023 hajj may suffer setbacks because of the shoddy arrangements made by some of the approved air carriers.
“As I am speaking to you now, only two approved airlines have secured slots with the Saudi General Authority from Civil Aviation (GAGA). This is just some few days to the beginning of pilgrims airlift,” experts have said.
In an interview with BBC Hausa Service on Sunday, NAHCON commissioner in charge of Personnel Management and Finance, Nura Yakasai, confirmed that the commission had resolved to deduct $100 from the pilgrims BTA.
But when contacted Sunday evening to find out whether the commission would share the deducted funds to the local and foreign approved airlines, he declined to comment.
He also refused to explain the justification for deducting the BTA from pilgrims of nine states whose approved airline (Flynas) didn’t seek for an increment over the Sudan crisis.
Mr Yakasai referred our reporter to the interview he granted BBC Hausa even though the interview didn’t address the issues this newspaper raised with him.
Rather, Mr Yakasai’s BBC interview has further created an atmosphere of uncertainty when he said the commission is yet to get approval of the fare increment from the Presidency even though it gone ahead to begin the deductions, nor agreed with the airlines with the $17 differentials.
This newspaper’s findings revealed that some cross sections of intending pilgrims are also planning serious showdown with the hajj commission over the $100 BTA deduction.
A Lagos intending pilgrim, Muftahu Azeez, said, “what NAHCON is planning to do is ridiculous and unacceptable.
“You can’t deduct my BTA and pay for the air ticket of other pilgrims. We have started mobilizing other pilgrims to oppose this by all means possible,” he said.
Another pilgrim from Niger state, Ndagi Alhaji-Sule, said, “NAHCON’s planned deduction is a fantasy. Impossible.
“Our airline (Flynas) is not charging additional fare. Why then is NAHCON deducting our BTA? This doesn’t make any sense. They should rescind it before it generates into something else.”
A pilgrim from Zamfara, who declined being named said, “We have heard this plan and we are already planning a protest at the NAHCON headquarters Abuja. We’ll certainly resist it.”
A lawyer, who is an intending pilgrim from Ogun state, Gaffaru Adams said, “what NAHCON is trying to do is an illegality.
“I am afraid that this deduction will open floodgates litigations against the commission. Already, some intending pilgrims are mulling to challenge this aberration in a court of law. The commission lacks such powers.”
