Popular islamic cleric, Sheikh Kabiru Gombe has called on President Bola Tinubu to subsidize the additional Hajj fare to ease the travel for intending pilgrims.
Gombe made the call during his 2024 Annual Ramadan Qur’anic Tafsir in Abuja on Monday.
Gombe said the plea has become necessary considering the challenging times in the country and the additional charges of N1.9m recently announced by NAHCON, “We are pleading with the president to settle these additional charges considering the huge additional charges by NAHCON and economic hardship in the country.
“The previous administrations of Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo, Goodluck Jonathan and Muhammadu Buhari – all made some part payments of the Hajj fares to ease the sojourn for Nigerian pilgrims. Therefore, no govt needs to have done this, more than the govt of Tinubu for obvious reasons.
“It’s an established fact that President Tinubu is a leader who listens, and I will be surprised if none of the President’s aides has counsel him on subsidizing the additional Hajj fare. Once again, we are appealing to the president to settle this additional fare for the pilgrims, pay for them and let them go pray for this country.
“And we all know that it wasn’t the pilgrims’ fault that these additional charges were incurred, they were given a figure and they paid a long time ago, so these new charges will only stop lots of these pilgrims from fulfilling this pillar of Islam.
“I am also calling on the state governors of Kano, Katsina, Kaduna, Jigawa, Borno, Yobe and all the northern and southern states to help subsidize this new Hajj fare to ease the visit for intending pilgrims of their states”, he stated.
