Abuja – The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) said it has completed screening and orientation of National Medical Team (NMT) members for the 2019 Hajj exercise.
The process took place in Abuja, the nation’s capital with the team’s composition shared on a ratio of 60/40 per cent between states and NAHCON respectively, while funding is on the reverse order.
These were contained in a statement issued by NAHCON’s head of media, Hajia Fatima Sanda Usara, saying that the mode of the nomination “followed random balloting where whosoever’s registration number is generated through a token is shortlisted”.
She said: “Thereafter, the individual is invited for screening and those who successfully scale through are appointed for the job.”
The statement also disclosed that NMT leader and representative of the Federal Ministry of Health in the Commission, Dr Ibrahim Kana outlined the strategies put in place for the medical personnel to carry out their responsibilities efficiently.
According to Usara, the team leader called on them to regard their task as a shared responsibility where each member respects general work ethics of the medical profession, adding that they are to treat all pilgrims equally, unmindful of a person’s class or prestige.
“They were also warned to treat pilgrims with utmost respect being the prime reason behind their assignment in Saudi Arabia. Dr Kana presented a paper on Roles, Responsibilities And Expectation Of Medical Personnel,” the statement added.
In a related development, NAHCON and Jaiz Bank also met on modalities for executing the 2019 Hajj Hadaya.
The strategic planning meeting with top management of Ja’iz Bank according to a statement by NAHCON’s head of public affairs, Fatima Sanda Usara, afforded the parties an opportunity to review previous engagements and strategize on how best to consolidate operations for payment, slaughter, delivery of Hadaya meat to pilgrims who require it, monitoring of the sacrifice and cost of Hadaya as determined by Islamic Development Bank.
Issues deliberated upon include Hadaya racketeering in and outside the country, with a decision that strong penalties be introduced to deal with anyone involved in swindling Nigerian pilgrims on matters of Hadaya; as well as measures to protect intending pilgrims from falling victims to Hadaya fraudsters.
“Consequently, intending pilgrims are cautioned against committing their Hadaya charges to any individual apart from Ja’iz Bank. They are to deposit the fees with any JBN branch closest to them whence they should be issued with a receipt confirming payment made.
“Alternatively, any committee set up by state pilgrims welfare boards to collect the said amount, due to the absence of JBN in the area, must remit the collected funds into JBN, the authorised representatives of IDB in Nigeria and thereafter distribute receipts to the clients.
“Similarly, intending pilgrims are enjoined to call the following phone numbers to report any individual collecting Hadaya fees from them or someone they know,” the statement added.
Managing Director of Ja’iz Bank, Mr Hassan Usman, was quoted as expressing gratitude to the Commission for the confidence reposed in them leading to their choice as IDB representatives in Nigeria for three consecutive years.
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