Hajj

By Uzair Adam

A Saudi-designated Nigerian Hajj air carrier, Flynas, has formalized an agreement with the Nigerian government for the airlift of pilgrims for the 2025 Hajj operations.

The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) has announced that the transportation of Nigerian pilgrims to Saudi Arabia will commence on May 5, 2025.

The agreement was signed on Monday at NAHCON’s headquarters in Abuja by the Chief Commercial Officer of Flynas, Mr. Khaled Alhejairi, and the commission’s Chairman and CEO, Professor Abdullahi Saleh Usman.

Present at the signing were Flynas’s Director for Business Development, Mr. Yasser Ajlan, Manager of Business Development, Mr. Hani Isma’il, and the Managing Director of First Planet Travels and General Sales Agent (GSA) of Flynas in Nigeria, Alhaji Umar Kaila.

Mr. Alhejairi reaffirmed the airline’s commitment to maintaining high service standards for Nigerian pilgrims, stating that Flynas has consistently fulfilled its obligations since joining the Nigerian Hajj operations in 2014.

“We want to assure NAHCON that Flynas will continue to provide comfortable and seamless travel experiences for our esteemed customers in Nigeria during the Hajj operation,” he said.

In January, NAHCON approved four airlines—Flynas, Air Peace, Max Air, and Umza Aviation Services Limited—for the 2025 Hajj operations. Among them, Flynas, the most experienced, has successfully transported Nigerian pilgrims for the past decade.

For the 2025 Hajj, Nigeria has a projected quota of 71,274 pilgrims, with NAHCON preliminarily allocating 22,894 pilgrims to Flynas, 9,145 to Air Peace, 23,342 to Max Air, and 15,893 to Umza Air.

Flynas, which operates in Nigeria under the Bilateral Air Services Agreement (BASA) between Nigeria and Saudi Arabia, has played a key role in stabilizing airlift operations for Nigerian pilgrims while expanding the capacity of its workforce.

By Uzair Adam

The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) has engaged an additional service provider for the 2025 Hajj following operational challenges with Mashariq al Dhahabia, the Saudi Arabian company initially contracted to serve Nigerian pilgrims.

A statement by NAHCON’s Head of Public Affairs, Muhammad Ahmad Musa, revealed that the decision was made to ensure a smooth pilgrimage experience after identifying issues that could hinder the seamless participation of Nigerian pilgrims.

Mashariq al Dhahabia had earlier threatened legal action against NAHCON, alleging a breach of contract due to the engagement of another company to provide services during the Masha’ir period—the five days pilgrims spend in Muna, Arafah, and Muzdalifah in Makkah.

The company argued that this move violated their agreement as the sole service provider and gave NAHCON 20 days to initiate discussions on the matter.

However, NAHCON maintained that it had acted in the best interest of Nigerian pilgrims, emphasizing its commitment to transparency and accountability.

“The decision to supplement Mashariq’s services with an additional provider was made after identifying operational challenges, particularly issues with Mashariq’s listing on the Saudi Visa Portal, Nusuk.

“Despite subsequent corrective actions by Mashariq al Dhahabia, NAHCON’s proactive decision was aimed at meeting Saudi deadlines and ensuring uninterrupted service for Nigerian pilgrims,” the statement read.

NAHCON dismissed reports of legal threats as an attempt to pressure the commission into granting an exclusive monopoly on the state pilgrim quota.

It reiterated its commitment to fostering a competitive service environment that prioritizes cost reduction and service quality.

The commission assured that it would continue upholding its contractual obligations and working transparently to safeguard the welfare of Nigerian pilgrims.

By Abdullahi Mukhtar Algasgaini

The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON), led by Chairman Prof. Abdullahi Saleh Usman, has commenced its official preparations for the 2025 Hajj pilgrimage with a significant working visit to Saudi Arabia.

The visit, which started on January 7, 2025, follows an invitation from the Saudi Ministry of Hajj and Umrah (MoHU), and aims to lay the groundwork for a successful pilgrimage later in the year.

The Nigerian delegation, which includes top NAHCON officials, is set to finalize key arrangements for the 2025 Hajj.

This includes the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Saudi authorities, which is scheduled for January 12, 2025.

The MoU will outline the framework for the coming year’s Hajj operations. Nigerian Foreign Minister, His Excellency Ambassador Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, will sign the MoU on behalf of Nigeria.

Accompanying Prof. Usman are NAHCON Commissioners for Planning, Research, Statistics, Information, and Library Services (PRSILS), Prof. Abubakar Abubakar Yagawal; Operations, Inspectorate, and Licensing Services (OILS), Prince Anofiu Olanrewaju Elegushi; and Policy, Personnel Management, and Finance (PPMF), Alhaji Prince Aliu Abdulrazaq.

Representatives from various Nigerian states’ Pilgrims’ Welfare Boards and Commissions, as well as Private Tour Operators, are also part of the visit.

Additionally, members from the Nigerian National Assembly, the Presidency, and the aviation industry have joined the delegation to help oversee preparations and decision-making.

A crucial part of the visit is the attendance of the International Hajj Expo, which kicks off on January 13, 2025. The delegation will evaluate potential service providers for Nigerian pilgrims at the event.

As part of the visit’s agenda, Prof. Usman and his team will hold consular meetings and engage in discussions with the heads of other countries’ Hajj missions.

They will also meet with the supervisors of the Hajj e-track registration portal, as well as officials from the General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) and other key stakeholders.

These consultations will finalize arrangements ahead of the MoU signing and set the stage for subsequent contracts with service providers, including United Agents, Car Syndicates, Tafweej, Adillah in Madinah, and Health Supervision Companies.

Meanwhile, other NAHCON staff members are conducting inspections of accommodations, catering facilities, and medical establishments in Makkah and Madinah to ensure they meet the required standards before finalizing agreements with service providers.

The ongoing preparations reflect Nigeria’s commitment to ensuring a smooth and successful Hajj for its citizens, with all logistical and service arrangements being carefully put in place ahead of the pilgrimage later in the year.

By Dr. Muhsin Ibrahim

Years ago, when visiting a prominent Hindu temple in Himachal Pradesh, India, an Indian coursemate became excited at the sight of a white man worshipping there. I asked why. She told me it was pretty reassuring to see someone you didn’t expect to share your belief practising it.

As I walk through sites in Madina, including the Prophet’s mosque, I see the faces of people from far and near, dressed differently and speaking various languages. People from all nooks and crannies of the world visit this holy city. I couldn’t help but recall and, somehow, share my friend’s feelings.

Without a doubt, Islam and Christianity, unlike and above many other religions, have universal appeal. I have also been to several parts of the world. However, seeing a sea of people of different skin colours, heights, and sizes worshipping in unison is stunning and soothing.

There is inflation globally, and poverty is also on the increase. Still, people troop to Mecca and Madina to perform Umrah, the lesser Hajj, as if it were free. For many Muslims, especially those who have never come here before, nothing is expensive.

Although the feeling is indescribable, I can mention just one: visualizing what you have (very likely) heard about all your life about Prophet Muhammad (SAW) and his companions feels distinct and unique. It’s so serene and serendipitous – ma sha Allah.

May Allah accept our prayers and rescue our country, continent, and all that is beyond.

Dr. Muhsin Ibrahim, who is a Nigerian working in Germany, is currently on lesser hajj in Saudi Arabia.

By Ibrahim Suleiman Ibrahim

It is a human trait, especially in this digital era, for people to take pictures in memorable places, should they have the privilege of travelling to those places. This is because we humans love to capture our favourite moments in memorable places or with memorable personalities so as to treasure the memories. It isn’t ‘always’ a show-off, as some people misinterpret it to be.

A good example of the manifestation of this trait is how almost, if not all, Nigerian graduates have a picture of them in NYSC Camp wearing their NYSC uniforms, how almost every married person treasures the picture of his/her own wedding ceremony, and of course, how almost all privileged pilgrims take pictures in front of the iconic Ka’abah in Makkah when they go for pilgrimage.

However, I still can’t understand why some holier-than-thou folks quickly conclude without any unambiguous Quranic and Hadith references that anybody who takes pictures in Makkah lacks ‘Ikhlās’, i.e sincerity to Allah, whereas the same people will snap pictures at their respective Juma’at Masaajid after every Friday Prayer, take pictures of themselves learning under Islamic scholars and the likes, without anybody questioning their Ikhlaas.

If there’s anything the pilgrims are showing-off when they travel for Hajj, then it will be the beautiful and memorable locations they were privileged to travel to and not their act of Ibādah that took them there.

I mean, Makkah, aside from being a very beautiful place, is a dreamland to all Muslims across the globe and a place they rarely have the privilege of going to. As such, you shouldn’t expect them not to want to treasure the memories of the once-in-a-lifetime experience they have there.

I understand that some pilgrims allow snapping of pictures to interfere with their acts of Ibādah during Hajj, and that is wrong, but even at that, we aren’t in the position to judge them, as the sincerity of intention is only known by Allah, the all-knowing.

Even where Allah talked about giving alms in the Qur’an, as sacred as it is, he mentioned in Qur’an 2:271 that revealing alms-giving to the public is okay, but concealing it is much better.

We can analogically deduce that it’s actually better if you decide not to take pictures for fear of ‘show-off’ when you travel for Hajj.

However, it is wrong to bully those who choose to take pictures, especially if their intention is to treasure their memories.

We take pictures at important places, in cars, in aeroplanes, and other places. I feel that’s human nature. Do Muslims have any better place than Makkah? Still, I reason that we should guard our Iman and take our pictures with Ikhlas.

Ibrahim Suleiman Ibrahim

By Ahmad Deedat Zakari

Adam Muhammad, who lives in the UK, said he cried when he first arrived at Makkah for the 2022 pilgrimage. 

“I cried when I first arrived,” He told reporters. 

According to a report by Islamic Channel, the 53-year-old electrical engineer from the UK travelled around 4000 miles on foot to reach Saudi Arabia. 

He thanked the Saudi government for granting him and his family Hajj permits.

“The Saudi government granted my family and me Hajj permits when it knew I was travelling from the UK to Makkah on foot. I met with my family in Madinah after they arrived from the UK and walked together to Makkah. I feel grateful to them,” Adam said. 

While commenting on the journey, Adam said it was difficult, and he made it solely for Allah’s sake. 

“I would feel mentally exhausted, unable to eat or drink too. But then something inside me would tell me that what are you afraid of? You have Allah by your side, and you can make it. I have lived for 52 or 53 years for myself. Why can’t I dedicate 10 or 11 months to Allah?” He said. 

According to reports, Adam reached Ayesha Mosque in Makkah on June 26, where a huge crowd received him. 

Adam had documented the progress of his journey on TikTok, where he is very active with over 2.8 million likes.

By Nasiru Manga

My dear mother, as pilgrims converge at Mount Arafat today, marking the climax of this year’s Hajj, I can’t help but shed tears, remembering that it was one of the lifetime ambitions you didn’t live to fulfil as you passed on precisely 155 days ago. Had you been alive and healthy, you could have been among the over one million pilgrims standing at the plain of Arafat today in observance of one of the five pillars of Islam that not every Muslim is lucky to perform.

I know you craved nothing in this world more than seeing yourself circumambulating the house of God, Kaaba al-Musharraf, in Makka and visiting the holy prophet of Islam (PBUH) in Madina. This informed my decision the first time I was blessed with fortune enough to sponsor your pilgrimage about three years ago.

I remember your reaction vividly when I broke the good news to you as I was seated a few meters away, facing you after you finished your Duha prayers one Saturday morning. Your face radiated with joy instantly upon hearing my plan, and for the first time in my life, I noticed tears of joy cascading down your cheeks despite your effort to stifle them. This image of you has kept flashing on my memory all these five months since you met your creator. I remember how you made me blush as you kept showering me with prayers and words of blessings as it was your wont in every little thing done to you.

We started all the necessary preparations for your Hajj. That was when I got to know your actual date of birth, as I had never discussed it with you before. You told me you were sixty-four and born on Sunday, the 7th day of Ramadan. So, using the Hijri converter, I arrived on 7th April 1957, the date we used in all your official documents to anticipate your lifting up to the holy land.

I remember how we had an animated conversation over the phone on the first day you started attending the weekly lessons organised for intending pilgrims in Dukku. You excitedly told me what transpired at the session in minute detail from the attendants, the number of lessons’ teachers and all each of them said, while I was keenly listening, interrupting you only for more clarification. However, we were disappointed when the organisers brought the session to an end a few weeks later. To our disappointment, we learned that there would be no hajj in 2020 due to Covid-19 pandemic restrictions in the world, including the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, thereby upending your plan to fulfil your lifetime ambition of answering the call of Prophet Abraham (PBUH).

I remember your response when it was suggested that you perform Umrah, when the Kingdom of Saudi started relaxing its Covid-19 restrictions. You told me over the phone that I should allow God to decide. You insisted that it should be Hajj first before Umrah. And you added: “If Allah so will that I will be there, they will push me even in a wheelbarrow, but if it was already written in lauhul mahfuz that I will not perform hajj, there is nothing you can do about it”.

Your health condition started deteriorating during the Covid-19 imposed two-year hiatus from Hajj. You had been a hypertensive patient, a regular visitor to the Federal Teaching Hospital Gombe, but you were never on admission until barely six months before you departed us. And even during your on and off admissions to the hospital, you were hopeful that the restriction would soon be lifted, and you would witness this day on the mount of Arafat. In fact, it was why you agreed to be hospitalised after your grandchildren convinced you that you should take your treatment seriously for this important day.

When I last saw you on a hospital bed, along with my wife and your grandchildren, you looked frail and not the spirited and good-humoured Maama I knew who would tease her grandchildren lovingly. But despite your condition, you were conscious of time for five daily prayers. The following day when I visited you, I heard you complain in a barely audible and soft voice about how your granddaughter did not wake you up in time to observe Subh prayer. I take consolation like a soothing balm in knowing that, as a follower of Tijjaniyya Sufi order, your mouth was full of Azkaar when you were placed on a ventilator about an hour before you took your last breath on 2nd Rajab 1443 (4th February 2022) after Juma’at prayer. It was around 3 pm that I received an unforgettable call from my kid bro and your youngest child informing me of the inevitable.

It’s been five months since you left us, Maama, but we have yet to come to terms with the vacuum you created. It has left an ineffable deep void in our hearts. Now I feel down every morning I wake up. I cannot hear your voice over the phone; listen to your never-ending prayers for me until I cut off the call. Your prayer for me, which I believe catalyses my success, is what I miss greatly. Images of you kept flashing in my memory when I last set my foot in your room which was a source of comfort and joy to everyone around you, especially your grandchildren, who thronged it for the daily goodies you preserved for them. My last call with you was on Wednesday, two days before your death, when I informed you of having an additional grandson, and I remember how you teased the new child calling him Moɗadimbo since his elder brother was called Moodibbo.

You taught me in your words and deeds how I should be generous and a happy giver, believing that what I give out to others is what’s mine, not what I spend on myself. I also learned altruism from you, as you were always concerned about the well-being of others above yours. The first time I brought you some stuff, you shared almost everything in my presence. This taught me a lesson not to buy things for you alone: I had to include my stepmother and uncle’s wives.

I remembered when once I visited you and discovered that your fan was not working. After buying you a new one, you insisted I  should do the same for my stepmother as her own wasn’t functioning too. Any time I visited, you would remind me to see so and so person, and while on the phone, you would tell me to call and felicitate or commiserate with so and so person, and you would ask me the next day whether I carried out your command.

I often felt guilty for hiding some of my problems from you because of your extreme care and concern for me. However, this was out of my respect for you, too, as you became more affected by my problem than I do. Missing you now is a heartache that will never go away.

On this Arafat day, which you had been longing for, I pray to Almighty Allah to grant you al-Jannatul Firdaus and forgive your shortcomings.

Nasiru Manga wrote from Dukku, Gombe State, via nasman@gmail.com.

By Muhammad Sabiu

The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) publicly apologized on Friday for its inability to transport 1,500 pilgrims for the 2022 Hajj.

Mrs Fatima Usara, the commission’s Assistant Director, Public Affairs Division, issued a statement on the unfortunate drama on Friday in Abuja.

She stated that there would be nine pilgrims from Bauchi, 91 from Plateau, and 700 from Kano State, who were supposedly travelling to the holy country.

Usara also expressed regret for the commission’s inability to transport an estimated 750 intending pilgrims from the Private Tour Operators sector.

She stated that the commission accepted responsibility for the hardships and disappointments experienced during outbound airlift operations to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia by intending pilgrims for the 2022 Hajj.

Usara was quoted in the statement as saying, “Sadly, in spite of all efforts to transport all Nigerian intending pilgrims to Saudi Arabia for the 2022 Hajj, NAHCON was incapacitated in discharging this responsibility.

“Majorly due to last-minute setbacks that frustrated its plan to conclude transportation of pilgrims by June 27.

“Unfortunately, the chartered flights option that gave so much hope to NAHCON and the Private Tour Operators’ leadership also became a failure as their IBAN accounts failed accreditation by the respective authorities in Saudi Arabia.”

Meanwhile, a video of some aggrieved intending pilgrims who also didn’t make it to the 2022 Hajj has gone viral on social media, airing their grievances and cursing anyone who has a hand in their ordeal.

By Salisu Yusuf

Since becoming the crown prince and de facto leader in 2017, Prince Mohammed bn Salman (known as MBS) is stirring controversies in Saudi Arabia and making the country a battleground between the conservative Sunni and trendy Western values.

Immediately after assuming power, MBS declared that the return of ‘moderate Islam’ was key to his plans. MBS’s declaration is an affront to Islam because his statement gives credit to Western media, which categorises Muslim adherents as either ‘moderate Muslim’ or ‘Islamic extremism.’ Such labels are derogatory and indictment; to label somebody as either moderate or extremist Muslim is to say that extremism is an extension of Islam. Moreover, MBS’s statement is a subtle backing to America retaining Guantanamo Bay Camp, where many innocent Muslims are being held without a trial and tortured. 

In 2018, MBS lifted a ban on women drivers. Saudi, being the last country in the world where such provision existed. Many, including Muslims, commanded the move as there’s no available Qur’anic injunction or Hadith that prohibits doing so. However, shortly before the ban was lifted, many women rights activists who campaigned against the ban were rounded up and imprisoned.

Bn Salman is seen by many as a power monger. For example, he was seen in 2017 shortly after becoming the crown prince with the former crown prince, Mohammed bn Nayef, the former pledging allegiance. Bn Nayef is King Salman’s nephew. He’s, therefore, MBS’s cousin. Bn Nayef was seen kneeling and kissing his older cousin’s hand, a gesture disapproved in Sunni Islam.

Saudi annual billion-dollar US arms deal is making Saudi Arabia a laughing stock. Former US President Trump supports Saudi because of the deal, and on the other hand, US moral and financial unconditional support to Israel is a source of concern.

The latest controversy is the mosque speaker restrictions. The Saudi government asks Imams and Muezzin to lower their speakers to a third of their maximum volumes during calls to prayer and during the prayer itself. 

Opponents criticise the restrictions, saying cafes and restaurants could be heard blaring loud music all over the country. Authorities had earlier said they placed the restrictions because parents complained that the speakers disrupt their children while asleep. Even though modern means of a call to prayer, the outrageous number of mosques and airing the prayer itself could be contestable if they’re brought under strict Islamic legal spotlight, some see MBS’s attempt to give some consolation measures to Western nationals living in the Kingdom.

Prince MBS has stepped up his opposition to freedom of expression, arresting and jailing many critics. Some have paid the heavy price with their lives, like the US-based journalist Jamal Khashoggi who was extrajudicially killed in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul. Many members of the ruling family were also arrested and imprisoned. They could only be released after paying the state some huge amounts of money, which authorities claimed was payback for alleged corrupt practices. In the past, substantial freedom of expression was allowed, especially on issues of check and balance.

Brazenly, Saudi Arabia has recently signed a 10-year professional wrestling contest show with an American World Wrestling Entertainment Company (WWE). So today, you can go to a stadium in either Jeddah or Riyadh and watch wrestling contests; Royal Rumble, Super Showdown, etc., are a daily occurrence as is seen in Texas, New York, and other cities in America.

Moreover, Hajj has been suspended since last year. The first time a Hajj was suspended since the creation of the Saudi Kingdom in 1932. Many Muslims criticise the move after watching the mammoth crowd that graced the 2020 Euro final played this month (July) at Wembley stadium. Over 60,000 spectators watched the final. Prior to kickup, thousands of Italian and English fans were shown walking en route to Wembley, overlooking the so-called Covid-19 protocols. If Europe, the epicentre of the coronavirus, could gather such huge crowds, they asked, why the international Muslim community could not be allowed to go to Hajj?

As Prince Mohammed bn Salman consolidates power and his father gets older, only time will tell for how long and which of the two contrasting values will win the battle in Saudi Arabia’s mainly Sunni, conservative community.