By Abubakar Jiddah Usman
In my two immediate past writings on the rumblings and ramblings in the Hajj Industry, I explained that there was never a time the Industry had been rancour free. Perhaps that’s why, if one goes through its history, from 1975 to date, one gets to find out that the Industry has been oscillating and been tossed around Ministry, Presidency, SGF etc. It has, even before evolving to become a Commission, been at one time under the Ministry of External Affairs, as a Unit, Directorate, Task Force et al, some other times directly under the Presidency, then Office of the Secretary to Government of the Federal and some other times under the office of the number two man in Nigeria, as it’s the case today. These changes have never been because of the exigences of administration, or ease running its affairs, but purely the unabated crises it has been contending with year-in, year-out.
This informed my call in the previous piece to Vice President Kashim Shettima to, even if it’s the last thing he would do in his life, leave a legacy in the Hajj Industry that would last when Nigeria lasts. Agreed, it is a herculean task, however, with Allah, then sincerity of purpose, commitment, sacrifice and dedication subsumed in the fear of Allah, Whom we all shall stand before, to account for all our deeds and misdeeds in this mundane and transient world, the task and problems would be surmounted.Unfortunately however, one fundamental aspect that is either lacking completely, or at its lowest ebb, among handlers and stakeholders is *The Fear Of Allah*. It may sound harsh, but any objective and sincere observer of the Hajj Industry, would sadly and with a heavy heart agree that most of the crises in the Industry stem from turning away from Allah and facing vanity (material gains). Allah Knows, I hate to use the Hausa adage, *barayi ba sa fada sai wajen rabiya*. But a statement of fact!It is an open secret that percentages are received and shared. Any efforts to cut down these percentages for the benefit of the ordinary pilgrims and betterment of the Industry, from virtually all service providers in Nigeria and in the holy land, is always met with all manner of stiff resistance, from within and without the Industry. Barrister Abdullahi Mukhtar is a good example here. The measures he took to house pilgrims at Markaziyyah in Madinah instead of the former far places from the Holy Mosque didn’t go down well with beneficiaries within the Industry, in both Saudi and Nigeria, who were cut off from the sleaze they considered their birth right, which today is considered by some as “our interest”. That effort by Barrister Abdullahi Mukhtar also saw the Hajj Industry owning a mighty edifice of its own in Abuja instead of operating from rented buildings. Previously the money went into private pockets as their own share from the percentages received at the expense of the pilgrims and the Industry. For Barristers Zikrullah and Jalal Arabi there was not much. Covid-19 became handicap for Zikrullah’s tenure, but before he could earn a second tenure, political fallout saw him and his team out. Jalal Arabi for daring the powers that be, was removed on trump up charges. Now Professor Abdullahi Saleh Usman Pakistan is on the hot seat. Lest someone thinks I’m holding brief for these persons, or claiming they are clean, certainly No, for I believe that, no one is a saint and no one without his own baggage, nonetheless, they are blameless for now since no court of law has found them wanting. But the fact remains that the cut throat dynamics of self interest, and these gentlemen resolve not to belong to saying if you can’t beat them join them is there for all discerning minds to see.
Barrister Abdullahi Mukhtar, has so many pluses going for him in the betterment and improvement of the Industry, while Professor Abdullahi Saleh Usman Pakistan, has pluses going for him, in efforts to see Nigerian pilgrims pay less. If Abdullahi was fought from all angles, before him, the first Chairman of the Hajj Industry, Late Shaykh Abubakar Mahmoud Gummi who resigned unexpectedly, how then would one expect Pakistan to have an easy sail!? How can any leader in the Hajj Industry excel when we have people who can vow in the name of Allah to sabotage the system in the name that their interest is being tamed. A high ranking official vowed to a national lawmaker that they would torpedo the Hajj exercise, and when asked why, he said their interest was at stake. Reminded about the consequences of the move to the ordinary pilgrims and the country’s image, the official was bold to say whatever would happen they would not allow the ship to bearth at the harbour safely.
With this mindset, if such people are among those calling the shot in Nigeria, how then do we expect this year’s Hajj not to have hiccups, particularly if one takes into consideration the petitions and counter petitions, the vote of no confidence and other blackmail tactics in used before all were asked to seethed their swords ?
Selection of service providers is supposed to be a prerogative of the Hajj Board, but the question remains how free are they in this regard ? Mashariq Dhahabiah, is on record that, it was one of the least competent to render services at Mashã’ir – Muna, Arafah and Muzdalifah – to Nigerian pilgrims – how were they contracted last year and this year ? Last year, there was an opening for engaging a rescuer, but what about this year ? They have tried to pull a fast one on Nigeria for this year’s operation, but were denied through the use of the Saudi authorities. Bearing this in mind, would Nigerian pilgrims get the best services this year ? I pray they do, but I’m, at the risk of being pessimistic, not optimistic. Hence my suggestion and call to the Vice President to take special interest and measures to ensure that Nigerian pilgrims got value for their money during this year’s Hajj exercise, so that they would be home and dry after the annual religious event.
Abubakar Jiddah Usman is a public Analyst from Kaduna.
