Pilgrims airlift begins next month

The NCPC Executive Secretary, Mr John Kennedy Opara, announced this during a visit to Israel to sign agreement with ground handlers and the Israeli authorities for the 2012 pilgrimage. Opara, who paid a courtesy call on the Nigerian Ambassador to Israel, David Obasa, told the Ambassador, “In April this year, the commission interviewed and screened […]

The NCPC Executive Secretary, Mr John Kennedy Opara, announced this during a visit to Israel to sign agreement with ground handlers and the Israeli authorities for the 2012 pilgrimage.

Opara, who paid a courtesy call on the Nigerian Ambassador to Israel, David Obasa, told the Ambassador, “In April this year, the commission interviewed and screened the ground handlers and 10 were successful. We are here to sign the agreements with them.”

Welcoming the team, Obasa wished them a successful exercise.

He noted that the embassy was going through challenges and solicited NCPC’s aid in addressing the issues through the federal government.

“We are having some challenges. I know you have the ears of important people in Nigeria. The State of Israel is now being hostile to those the authorities consider ‘infiltrators’ especially Africans. By implication Nigerians are not safe,” the ambassador lamented.

He tasked the commission to do everything possible to stop those who would want to use pilgrimage as an avenue to come to Israel for things other than the spiritual exercise.

Meanwhile, NCPC has signed an agreement with two approved air carriers, Atlas Jet and KS Travels/Empire Aviation for the October to December 2012 pilgrimage exercise.  Speaking at the ceremony, the chairman of the commission, Archbishop Nicholas Okoh, said signing of the Air Carriers Agreement was a major process in making this year’s pilgrimage hitch-free.

“We are, therefore, stressing now that the quality of aircraft and the competence of the operators and crew must be the best there can be. The age also matters to us because two years is different from 15 years—we cannot manage any aircraft.

“In the light of the recent incidents in the aviation industry, we cannot afford to jeopardize the lives of Nigerians. We can go back on this if we are dissatisfied at some point,” the archbishop maintained.

He also said the commission will ensure that all necessary arrangements with countries which will be visited and flown over are made as well as route mapping obligations fulfilled.

In his remarks, Opara stressed that even after the signing of the air carrier agreement, if any of the air carriers failed to abide by the terms and conditions of the agreement, the commission would not hesitate to invalidate the agreement.

He appealed to the companies to keep to the terms of agreement.

“The commission will provide the enabling environment for you to operate successfully without hitches,” he promised them.