The Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, has inaugurated a new Hajj camp in Benin for the state Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board.
Speaking at the event, Obaseki on Friday, he said that the new camp project was part of his administration’s efforts to improve the welfare of Muslim faithful in the state.
He commended the Muslim community for their contributions to peace and stability in the state, saying, “You have helped me promote peace in Edo State”
He said, “We have completed this Hajj camp because we know the use and usefulness of this camp.
“The aim is to provide a fitting facility that will help serve as a meeting point and coordination point for Hajj activities and also for the welfare of pilgrims in the state.
“I can recall very vividly those days when you had a lot of tension in the country, a lot of tension in the states between religious sects.
“You managed the situation in the state very very well and peacefully.”
Obaseki stressed the importance of partnering with religious clerics to address the needs of citizens.
“When citizens are in pain, when they have hardships, when they are troubled, very few of them have access to Government House.
“But every Friday, if you go to the mosque, you find people who don’t have food, people who cannot eat, people who are sick, who need help,” he said.
The governor thereafter Inaugurated a new board for the agency headed by Sheikh Ibrahim Oyarekhua.
He charged them to work towards the benefit of the Muslim community in the state.
The Nigerian Tribune reports that Gov. Obaseki was at the occasion honoured with an award as the most Muslim-friendly governor in South-South Nigeria by the Independent Hajj Reporters.
While presenting the award, the national coordinator of the reporters association, Alhaji Ibrahim Mohammad, presented the award to the governor, praised Obaseki’s efforts to promote social cohesion and improve the welfare of Muslims in the state.
Mohammad also presented an award of most disciplined Hajj official for 2024 Hajj operations to the board chairman.
In his address, the chairman of the board, Oyarekhua, expressed his gratitude to Obaseki, stating, “It has been a good work with you for these eight years.”
The chairman underscored the importance of unity and collaboration, saying, “We were brought together to work together, and it is because of our collective efforts that we have achieved so much.”
The chairman also cautioned against allowing mischief-makers to cause confusion in the board, saying, “We must not be manipulated by those who are always out to create greater confusion.”