WHY SAUDI MUST NOT LIFT RESTRICTION ON HAJJ
Of course, for a wealthy nation like the KSA which is drenched in more oil money than it knows what to do with, losing revenue from a few thousand Nigerian spiritual tourists might not sound like a big sacrifice; but the gesture strikes at the heart of the annual fiasco that has characterized the organization […]
Of course, for a wealthy nation like the KSA which is drenched in more oil money than it knows what to do with, losing revenue from a few thousand Nigerian spiritual tourists might not sound like a big sacrifice; but the gesture strikes at the heart of the annual fiasco that has characterized the organization and execution of Hajj operations in Nigeria for hundreds of years. More than half a century ago, way back in 1953 to be precise, the late Abubakar Imam, a prolific author, statesman and journalist, performed the Hajj and documented his experience in the book: Abubakar Imam Memoires (1989) which was edited by Abdulrahman Mora.
Chapter eleven of the book captured the essential problems of Nigerian Hajj operations from all possible angles. Essentially, Imam was of the view that poor pilgrim education before the trip and a lack of (competent) leadership in the Holy Land, were the major reasons why Nigerian pilgrims stood out as the most notoriously unruly among those of other countries. Among his findings, he reported grimly: “I have gathered from reliable sources, a confidential report on the activities of my people, the Takari (black people). In a nut-shell, this is what the report embodies: ‘Takari are so miserable and so uncultured, displaying such a savage conduct that few people can really like them”.
On his return to Nigeria, Imam wrote a comprehensive report detailing his experiences and offered recommendations on how that terrible perception of black people and in particular, Nigerians could be changed for the better. It is obvious now what must’ve happened to Imam’s report. This writer was similarly in Saudi Arabia last year for the Hajj and the loud and generally unruly conduct of Nigerian pilgrims was on display everywhere they were found in the Holy Land. Equally evident also was the shabby arrangements made by the Hajj officials and travel agencies at the expense of Nigerian pilgrims.
I can also recall what a prominent Islamic scholar and the Imam of a very prominent Mosque in Abuja said of the way Nigerian pilgrims are perceived by Saudi authorities and even other pilgrims. The Imam, during an evening lecture in the Mosque, told us that a few years ago, the Saudi government invited some prominent Imams and scholars from Nigeria to travel to Saudi for a parley with the Chief Imam of Mecca. During the parley, one Nigerian Imam raised this question: that in view of what is happening in Palestine, some Nigerians feel they ought to travel over there and lend a helping hand to their Muslim brothers by helping them to fight the Jews. The response of the Chief Imam of Mecca was quite revealing; according to our narrator, he looked at the Nigerian Imam who raised the question with barely restrained impatience and told him that instead of Nigerian Muslims thinking of how to help Palestine, they should rather go back to their country and think of how to solve an even bigger problem than that of the Palestinians. This problem, he went on, was that of ignorance and poor conduct of Nigerian pilgrims. He told them that every year, Nigeria sends forth a motley group of pilgrims who rank among the most poorly educated and ill- behaved in the world. They would be serving Islam better, he told the cream de la crème of Nigerian Imams, if they could return home and launch an aggressive education campaign that will cure their people of such deadly ignorance.
And then last year amidst accusations of nepotism and incompetence against Nigerian Hajj officials, Nigerian pilgrims reportedly mobbed their leader, the Amirul Hajj, who was a serving senator. This, in essence, says all there is to say about the current state of the organization of Hajj operations in Nigeria and it is against this background that all stakeholders in the Muslim pilgrimage in Nigeria should view the recent Saudi decision to restrict pilgrims, not only from Nigeria but from other parts of the world to one Hajj only after very five years.
Curiously, some of the major stakeholders who should be applauding this decision (because it should make their job easier), appear to be strongly opposed to it. The Nigerian Hajj Commission which is a federal government agency and the main umbrella body that coordinates Hajj operations, has reportedly protested to the Saudi authorities and is desperately looking for a way to have the restriction reversed. This is tantamount to a man buckling under a weight and resisting when he is offered relief. What could be the commission’s problem?
Corruption is the most likely explanation for this curious behaviour by the commission. For years, it has been reported overtly and covertly, that the Hajj Commission in conjunction with the state pilgrims welfare boards that it is actually part of the problem rather than the solution to the intractable problem of smooth Hajj operations in the country. Reform after reform had been experimented with and the situation has refused to improve. Instead, the Hajj bill each year that various state governments incur in the name of subsidizing Hajj fares for its indigenes has kept going up.
Insiders say that over 30 per cent of Nigerian pilgrims are “professional pilgrims”, meaning those who go every year pay little attention to spiritual matters. Most of them are not only subsidized but their entire trip is paid for by their state governments. The Saudi authorities are fully aware of this and it is partly to convey their frustrations over the Nigerian officials’ inability to get their acts right that they imposed the restrictions. According to a very credible source, the Saudi officials also know that Nigeria would be hardest hit by this new policy because it is one of the biggest offenders.
Thus rather than running around trying to find a way to circumvent this policy, the Hajj Commission and the states’ pilgrims welfare boards should see this as an opportunity to redeem what is left of their—and the country’s—image in the matter of the Muslim annual pilgrimage to do a serious soul-searching with a view to set its house in order. So far, only the Sokoto state government was reported to have started complying with the new policy. According to a Daily Trust report published on page 8 of the edition of September 2, the state government has directed its officials to begin screening pilgrims affected by the new policy. Other stakeholders should take a cue from Sokoto and stop embarrassing themselves and ridiculing their religion.
In the same edition of the newspaper cited above, it was also reported on page 3 that Nigeria’s Vice President, Namadi Sambo, who is already in Saudi Arabia for the lesser Hajj (another spiritual duty-turned jamboree)is scheduled to meet with Saudi officials in connection with the new policy. By all means, the VP should meet them but in the name of God, he must never try to request a policy reversal on this matter; instead, he should express our appreciation to the Saudi authorities for assisting us to begin to fix our Hajj problems. It’s about time.