In its bid to ensure a smooth experience for Nigerian pilgrims, particularly very important personalities, the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) has secured a total of 2,800 Tent A accommodations for Nigerian VIPs at the Masha’ir (holy sites of Mina and Arafat) for this year’s Hajj exercise.
Tent A accommodation for Nigerian VIPs has been a contentious issue in recent times, including during last year’s Hajj when some state governors—Senator Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed of Bauchi State and Governor Umar Bago of Niger State—criticised the Commission for allegedly failing to secure adequate Tent A accommodations.
However, days ahead of the airlift of Nigerian pilgrims to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for this year’s holy pilgrimage, NAHCON announced that, through its Saudi service provider, with whom it signed an agreement to provide VIP services, a total of 2,800 bed spaces had been secured close to the Jamrat.
This development was disclosed by NAHCON’s Assistant Director for Information and Publication, Fatima Sanda Usara, during a Zoom meeting between the Nigerian Hajj body and the Saudi service provider, Rawaf Mina Service Providers, held on Wednesday night.
Following this development, NAHCON Chairman/CEO, Professor Abdullahi Saleh Usman, has advised private tour operators who have indicated interest in Tent A accommodation through Rawaf Mina to upgrade their payments accordingly to gain access to the facilities.
According to Usara, “The company revealed that it has secured 2,800 VIP bed spaces in the newly constructed building located just a few metres from the Jamrat.
“The five-storey facility comprises 23 rooms on the first floor and 30 rooms each on the second, third, and fourth floors.”
She added that the Chairman of Rawaf Mina urged tour operators—who were present during the Zoom meeting and briefed on the modalities for upgrading payment for Tent A accommodation—to conclude their Hajj registration procedures early.
According to the company chairman, this urgency was due to the company’s plan to produce the NUSUK access cards for its pilgrims once all processes were completed.
“Consequently, tour operators whose intending pilgrims have enlisted for Tent A but were initially registered under Tent D for administrative purposes are now required to pay the balance in order to confirm their allocation and ensure the re-routing of their transportation vehicles to the appropriate camp in Mina,” Usara stated.
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