FOR THE RECORD: BEING A SPEECH DELIVERED BY THE NATIONAL COORDINATOR OF INDEPENDENT HAJJ REPORTERS, IBRAHIM MUHAMMED, AT THE 2019 HAJJ EXCELLENCE AWARDS HELD ON JANUARY 23, 2020 AT THE STONE-HEDGE HOTELS, ABUJA
Your Excellency
Honourable Mai Mala Buni
Executive Governor of Yobe State
Your Excellency
Adnan Bostaji
Ambassador of Saudi Arabia to Nigeria
Ag Chairman /CEO
National Hajj Commission of Nigeria
Barr Abdullahi Mukhtar Muhammed
Chairman of the Occasion and
Chairman of House of Representatives Committee on Pilgrims Affairs.
Honorable Abubakar Nalaraba
Chief of Staff to Katsina State Governor
Alhaji Muntari Lawal
Executive Secretaries/Chairmen of State Muslims Pilgrims Welfare Boards
My honorable collogues in the media
Ladies and gentlemen
Assalaimu alaikum
It is with great pleasure and honour for Independent Hajj Reporters to welcome you all to INDEPENDENT HAJJ REPORTER’S 2019 HAJJ EXCELLENCE AWARDS AND LECTURE.
The Independent Hajj Reporters (IHR) is a registered non-profit organization that comprises Muslim journalists who work tirelessly to enlighten Nigerian pilgrims on how to perform one of the most important pillar of Islam – Hajj.
The three cardinal objectives of Independent Hajj Reporters is to enlighten pilgrims on the do’s and don’ts of hajj both in Nigeria and in Saudi Arabia, to create mutual understanding among all hajj stakeholders through the instrumentality of the media, and finally to assist in reporting hajj activities to the public using the media.
Independent Hajj Reporters was formed with the aim of creating an umbrella platform for Muslim Journalists to contribute their quota in pilgrims’ enlightenments, dissemination of Hajj /Umrah information without losing focus of our bequeathed responsibility of performing oversight functions.
Another objective of this organization is to redefine the art of hajj information dissemination that focuses on pilgrims enlightenment and education, x-raying hajj policies with a view to offering constructive criticisms, exercising oversight functions to ensure that pilgrims get commensurate value for their money and create an avenue for healthy debates that will assist in conducting a hitch-free hajj operation.
In order to achieve these laudable objectives, IHR establishes the first online newspaper that is dedicated to hajj and hajj alone (www.hajjreporters.com), and also publishes Hajj Reporters Magazine, an annual publication. This is in addition to our social media handles and bulk text messages that reach over half a million Nigerian Muslims.
Independent Hajj Reporters has media representatives across the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) that world round the clock to source and report hajj and Umrah news.
The dedication, commitment, and sheer will from our members manifested in the modest successes achieved in the areas of dissemination of hajj/umrah related information to Muslim Ummah all over the world.
We are working tirelessly with like minds to restructure the media arm of Independent Hajj Reporters into an integrated and premier Hajj Media Centre – the centre will serve as a nerve centre for all hajj and Umrah related information in the country. It will provide hajj and Umrah information 24/7 that can be sourced by all hajj stakeholders that include service providers, administrators, regulators, pilgrims among others.
Independent Hajj Reporters, will, however, continue to perform its watchdog function, by drawing the attention of Hajj administrators, hajj service providers, hajj officials, and other relevant hajj – related bodies to challenges and flaws.
We will continue to focus our coverage on the evolution and development of Hajj and Umrah, the massive structure of policy and program of service delivery to pilgrims as being spearheaded by the Saudi Ministry of Hajj.
There is no gain saying the fact that progress in hajj policies and implementation comes from vigorous cross-fertilization of exchange of ideas.
In this in this regard that we are appealing to the Saudi Ministry of Hajj, National Hajj Commission of Nigeria, States Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Boards, NAHCON-Licenced Private Tour Operators, Hajj Service Providers based in Nigeria and Saudi Arabia to support IHR online newspapers and magazine through advertorials, special coverage and supplements.
We have all gathered here to celebrate some hajj stakeholders who we believed have exceptionally added value to hajj operations in their various endeavors in 2019.
The awards is aimed at creating a positive competition within hajj services delivery circle for the benefit of our dear pilgrims and Muslim Ummah.
Recipients of today’s award were carefully scrutinized using hajj operational performance index laid down by apex hajj regulating body and Independent Hajj Reporters 2019 Hajj Team.
Finally, it is our hope that those who are being honoured today will take this as an appreciation of their hard work and a challenge for them to continue to render quality services to our dear pilgrims.
Assalamu Alaikum.
