Governor Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa State has firmly cautioned the Muslims Welfare Pilgrims Board against facilitating individuals from outside the state to use its jurisdiction as a means to embark on the sacred journey to Saudi Arabia.
The governor issued this directive during the acceptance of the 2023 Hajj Report. The report was presented by the state’s Amir-ul-Hajj, Justice Aisha Bashir Aliyu, who holds the position of Chief Judge of Nasarawa State. The presentation took place at the Government House in Lafia on Monday.
He said it was “Totally unacceptable and unfair” to allow people from other states to use Nasarawa State as a platform to perform Hajj when the state government was expending huge amounts of money as subsidy for the pilgrims.
He, however, stated that henceforth, one hundred per cent of the pilgrims must be residents of Nasarawa State.
Presenting the report before Engineer Sule, the Amir-ul-Hajj, Justice Aisha, raised concern over the deliberate flouting of the law banning pregnant women from going on pilgrimage, stressing that five heavily pregnant women from the state went on Hajj this year.
She stated that two women successfully delivered, but unfortunately, three others experienced miscarriages. The executive secretary of the board’s intervention prevented potential sanctions from Saudi Arabian authorities against Nasarawa State.
