Hajj: Stuck Oyo pilgrims purchase round-trip tickets in Saudi Arabia

Some pilgrims from Oyo State who just completed the Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia have made the decision to buy their own tickets for the return trip.

I have learned that this is because the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) is allegedly unable to transport them home as planned.

had earlier reported that around 1,000 pilgrims from Oyo State who were meant to have been taken back home are currently trapped in Saudi Arabia.

None of the pilgrims who were expected to return on July 10 have been evacuated.

As a result of the commission’s inability to airlift them as planned, it has been learned that some of the pilgrims have chosen to buy their return tickets.

Due to the hardships in the holy place, Alhaji Oriyomi Hamzat, one of the state’s pilgrims, informed Obasanjonews24 that he and other pilgrims had paid their own return tickets.

The Ibadan-based broadcaster, who has just arrived in Nigeria, told Obasanjonews24 that NAHCON is to blame for the issue.

Several pilgrims, including a former senator and the chairman of the pilgrims board, found an alternative by paying for their own return tickets as a result of the pain they had to endure, according to Hamzat.

But he also disclosed that those other pilgrims who were unable to afford to purchase their return tickets are currently stranded in the nation.

“At the airport, I have just arrived. Before I had my own return ticket, we got lost. The rest of the travelers are still stranded in Saudi Arabia. When they will be airlifted is unknown to them.

“I can attest to the fact that Alhaji Taofeek Akewugbagold, Senator Monsurat Sunmonu, and I purchased our own return tickets, according to a former chairman of the Oyo State Pilgrims Welfare Board. It is NAHCON who is at blame, not Oyo State. Ten people or so had already bought their return tickets, he said.

But when contacted, Mousa Ubandawaki, Deputy Director, Information and Publication of NAHCON, remarked that pilgrims from the state would be evacuated tomorrow (Wednesday).

The pilgrims were not stuck, according to Ubandawaki’s response to a query from the Obasanjonews24 on Tuesday evening.

“It is untrue that this is an abandoned state, including Oyo State. Tonight’s second flight, to Nassarawa, is scheduled. Oyo State will finally get its due when the Saudi General Authority on Civil Aviation (GACA) approves the airline’s slot.

Tomorrow Oyo is taking off. The group is not stranded. The Oyo chairman is currently in our office to obtain the letter of release for the first group of pilgrims departing tomorrow, the man said.