The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) says that the intending pilgrims for the 2024 Hajj exercise may receive refunds following the crash of the U.S dollar against the naira in recent days.
Daily News 24 reports that the NAHCON had raised hajj fares to N8.4 million following the devaluation of the Naira after it was floated by the Central Bank of Nigeria.
The Hajj fare had risen from N4.5 million and then to N6.8 million before the hajj commission asked pilgrims to increase N1.9 million, bringing the total hajj fare to N8.4 million last month.
Due to the unprecedented rise in the hajj fare, some state governments including Kano, Bauchi, Borno had subsided the hajj fare for pilgrims with different sums ranging between N500,000 to N900,000 per pilgrim.
But Speaking with online broadcast channel DCL Hausa, the Chairman of the NAHCON, Dr Jalal Ahmad Arabi, said the commission was looking into the possibility of refunding part of the hajj fare to pilgrims after the US dollar crash to less than N1,000 from over N1,600 in recent weeks.
“For instance, if we had announced our fare when the dollar was N1,000 and you make your payment when it crashed to 900, then we have to refund the extra N100 to you.
“But we can’t allow it to keep crashing because the dollar may later rebound,” he said.
He added that as long as he was the head of theNAHCON, no pilgrim would be shortchanged.
However, Mr Arabi did not state when the commission would begin refunding the pilgrims.
But it is understood that most refunds are implemented after the conclusion of the hajj exercise
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