IHR
Pilgrims from Nasarawa state currently in Makkah after the completion of Hajj 2019 rites says they have been abandoned by officials from the state.
The pilgrims spoke to HAJJ REPORTERS during a visit to their accomodation in Makkah on Friday.
They alleged that officials from the state Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board who are in Saudi to ensure their welfare are often unavailable to attend to their inquiries.
Two female Pilgrims Aisha Umar and Fatima Habibu alleged that they could not find someone to help them locate clinics when they fell seriously ill recently.
They said a fellow male Pilgrim came to their aid.
Several other pilgrims, who spoke to us on the condition that their names are not mentioned also accused the officials of deliberately avoiding pilgrims so that they will not be asked for any sort of assistance.
The state officials have however, denied the claims.
The Public Relations Officer of the board, Abdul- Razak Muhammad in response to inquiries by HAJJ REPORTERS said the Nasarawa State Pilgrims Board has two accommodations all located along Bin Ladin Mosque.
He also said “the operational staff of the board are divided into two to attend to and assist pilgrims in addressing some of their challenges including health.
“ In fact, the board has stationed one of its official bus to be conveying pilgrims to nearby health centers, some of the health centers usually visited by Nasarawa Pilgrims are Kogi and Jigawa medical house respectively,” he said.
The PRO also said “most of the Pilgrims have staff Numbers they can call even if we are in the mosque and we often rush to attend to them”.
