Hajj 2012: Initial hitches, Operation ‘Tent C’

And one of the ways the Commission, under the leadership of Mallam Musa Bello, does this is through the introduction of new ways of doing things, during every hajj operation, thus, making a subsequent hajj operation, better than the preceding one. For instance, during the 2011 hajj operation, several committees were put in place to […]

And one of the ways the Commission, under the leadership of Mallam Musa Bello, does this is through the introduction of new ways of doing things, during every hajj operation, thus, making a subsequent hajj operation, better than the preceding one.

For instance, during the 2011 hajj operation, several committees were put in place to beef up the services rendered to pilgrims. The committees include, but not limited to: National Reception –which welcome all Nigerian pilgrims, irrespective of states as they arrived the holy land; Command and Control Centre- which monitored aircraft movement; Consumer Rights-which policed what was given to pilgrims in terms of food and drink, on board and in the holy land; and the National Feeding Committee- which ensured that pilgrims get food at Mina and Arafat, timely. Ironically, the feeding committee was only effective in the areas to feeding to NAHCON officials and the federal government delegation, a thing that was pointed out at the post-Arafat meeting by the Consumer Rights Committee.

And the commission was set to achieve it in spite of the hullabaloo that greeted the untimely return of female pilgrims from the holy land over the contentious issue of Mahram (guardian for the female pilgrim) to Nigeria, less than a week after their initial departure. Since this piece is not about the appropriateness and inappropriateness of what transpired, I shall leave the issue of Mahram for now, and return to it at a later date. But the point is, were the female pilgrims to be deported, as erroneously captured by some ill-formed officials of the commission, and which was picked up by my constituency, the media, those pilgrims would not be allowed entry into any where near the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, until after five years. But this is not the case here.

What then is the cheering news about the 2012 hajj operation? It is about Tent C. What is Tent C? Now, while it is true that as pilgrims, we spend between 14 to 40 days, depending on the arrangement, in holy land, the most significant aspect of the entire hajj exercise takes place within five days. And these days are spent in Mina and Arafat.

Incidentally, these are places where most Nigerian pilgrims suffer the most. They sleep on bare floor, they catch cold, eat all kinds of filth in the name of food, and sleep amidst all kinds of heaps of refuse, generated by food vendors, most of whom are illegal migrants. It was this kind of filthy environment that led to the outbreak of cholera at the Kaduna camp last year, while in Mina.

However, the Tent C, which is an additional service arrangement for the five days in Mina and Arafat, will eliminate all that this year. This arrangement was conceptualised and brokered by the NAHCON commissioner in charge of Policy, Personnel, Management and Finance, PPMF, Yusuf Ibrahim Adebayo.

With just additional 600SAR, equivalent of just N24, 000, which has now been factored into the total package each pilgrim paid, every Nigerian pilgrim will be entitled to a mattress, a blanket, a pillow and three square meal, for these five days, with adequate security. This arrangement totally eliminates the presence of any food vendor, a thing that will add to the hygienic nature of the surroundings around the tent.

But there is a caveat. Once any pilgrim gives out his/her tag, which allows him/her entry into such a tent, he/she will neither be allowed entry into the tent, nor enjoyed the rights and privileges that come with it. As such, pilgrims are advised to ask for their rights from their respective State officials. State officials too, who are in the habit of short-changing pilgrims, especially those pilgrims who can neither read nor write, must fear Allah and discharge their duties with utmost responsibility. They must desist from denying these village men and women their rights and privileges, and bear in mind that any act of assisting any pilgrim before and during hajj, is in itself an act of ibadah (worship).

Maidabara is an Abuja-based and can be reached on [email protected]