FG gets ultimatum over pilgrims’ luggage

Gboyega Adeoye, Lagos - 24.01.2008

THE Federal Government has been given up to 48 hours to address the issue of pilgrims, whose luggage are still trapped due to negligence on the part of the airline that flew them into the country from Saudi Arabia.

This ultimatum was issued by the Secretary General of the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (SCIA), Alhaji Abdulateef Adegbite, while speaking with aviation journalists in Lagos.

Adegbite, who bemoaned the incessant flaw in the hajj process, said the present ordeal of the concerned pilgrims was a national disgrace that should be addressed urgently.

“As I am talking to you now, it is so disgraceful that luggage of many pilgrims are still behind. We understand that an airline misbehaved. That is a serious embarrassment to the pilgrims in particular and Nigeria in general.

“I believe the Federal Government has to do everything possible within 72 hours to get those luggage back to this country because it is so bad,” he said.

The Islamic scholar blamed the incessant flaw that had often characterised the hajj exercise on too much concentration of the planning on government rather than involving the real stakeholders.

“All along, it has been the government that has been driving the engine, but we now have to make it people driven engine and we should come out now with a good plan,” he said.

Adegbite stated that the legislation setting out the planning of the hajj exercise should be looked into so that a resolution would be arrived at to save the nation from the yearly embarrassment.

“We would look at the legislation all over again but currently, hajj operation in the country is an embarrassment to us and we have to do something about it. Honestly, it is an embarrassment to us,” he said.

He described the issue at hand as very unfortunate, noting that Islam emphasised order and painstakingness.

“It must be and we have to move very quickly, even if it means we have to do a few things that are very drastic, but you see, it is an embarrassment. Islam is a well-organised religion. We have set down rules and we must stop embarrassing ourselves,” he stressed.