As the strike action declared by the Nigerian Labour Congress enters its first day, the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria, NAHCON, has said the ongoing strike action will not affect airlifting of pilgrims to Saudi Arabia for the 2024 Hajj rites, adding that a total of 37,102 pilgrims have been airlifted to the Holy Land.
The remaining 28,000 intending pilgrims will have to be airlifted before June 12, when Arabia is expected to close its borders for the Hajj operation. Out of the number, the private tour operators will airlift about 15,000 through chartered flights.
NAHCON, in a statement, said, “By day 19 of the 2024 Hajj airlift, 37,102 pilgrims have been airlifted to Saudi Arabia; this number excludes officials and other Hajj industry stakeholders involved in the Hajj operations. The Hajj flights have been departing as planned, beginning with the initial three flights per day on the day of the inaugural flight. This gradually increased to a maximum of six flights daily.
Currently, NAHCON runs a minimum of four flights daily to a maximum of six flights, depending on the schedule.
“About 13,176 pilgrims are yet to be airlifted, and this number would have reduced before the end of today.
“A breakdown of the states yet to conclude the airlift shows one more flight each remaining from the following locations: Kaduna, Gombe, Borno, Zamfara, Adamawa, Kebbi, and FCT, with 33 pilgrims on ground. All South-South states will be airlifted in one flight, with seats remaining. Taraba, with a little over 1,000 pilgrims, is yet to commence airlift as scheduled, while Kwara, Jigawa, Niger, and Sokoto are continuing with airlift of their pilgrims steadily on course.
“As approved in the airlift agreement, all carriers deployed the agreed number of aircraft for the exercise. Max Air has provided two operational aircraft, with one available as standby.
“While the strike embarked upon by the National Labour Congress is causing apprehension among some concerned pilgrims, the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria wishes to assure pilgrims and other concerned Muslims that the strike action will not affect the Hajj airlift.
“From NAHCON’s projection, all pilgrims will be transported to Saudi Arabia before June 10, 2024.”
