In what will come across as a rather interesting development, some officials may soon become unable to perform hajj.
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A government representative, on Sunday, revealed that Nigerian
government officials responsible for assisting pilgrims for the 2016
Hajj in Saudi Arabia may be stopped from performing the rites.
According to Premium Times, Abdullahi Mohammed, the chairman of the
National Hajj Commission of Nigeria, NAHCON, told journalists at the
plains of Arafat in Saudi Arabia that officiating and performing hajj
could be challenging.
“To officiate as well as perform hajj is difficult. We have
done that in the past, and at the end of the day we all felt it in our
body. Sometimes you don’t have the right state of mind to really do the
needful in terms of performing your official functions,” he said.
Nigeria and other participating countries, alongside host Saudi
Arabia, have implemented new policies to enhance pilgrims’ safety during
the 2016 Hajj, following the death of more than 2000 people in
accidents during the 2015 event.
Mr. Mohammed said NAHCON may also consider the next policy in the 2017 Hajj exercise.
“From next year, we will discuss with other stakeholders to
find a way of making it as a policy in partial implementation and then
gradually we will enforce it as a policy in the whole nation,” he said.
He also said even if Nigeria was not considering such a policy, the Saudi authorities will in the near future impose it.
“I am certain that even if we don’t do it as a nation, a time
will come when the Saudi authorities will do it. If you are in the
Kingdom for the purpose if observing Hajj, you observe it; and if you
are an official who is supposed to officiate Hajj activity, they would
not allow you to perform the Hajj and they would put that restriction,” he said.
Mr. Mohammed said the policy would help officials to perform
optimally on their duties as it would help them monitor and assist
pilgrims.
“This concept will not be restricted to only the staff of the
commission or those who come under the it but will also go down to the
states, because that is where the bulk of the work in terms of
management of the Hajj is,” he saidWhen News Breaks Out, We Break In. (The 2014 Bloggies Finalist)
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