Last Year’s Stranded Pilgrims Get Relief

-As Hajj Committee airlifts them to Mecca

By A. A. Yayra

The 2013 Hajj Committee under the Chairmanship of Hon. Alhaji Ibrahim Abdul Rauf Tanko has so far airlifted 3,170 pilgrims which included 170 of the 378 stranded pilgrims who duly paid their monies last year but could not embarked on the holy pilgrimage to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Plans are underway to consider airlifting the remaining 208 stranded pilgrims of last year’s batch for the much cherished religious exercise of which 15 flights are expected in all, and the last flight is scheduled to depart Accra on October 6, 2013, said the Deputy Communication Director, Mr. Mohammed Amin Lamptey.

Addressing the media in Accra yesterday, Chairman of the National Hajj Committee, Alhaji Rauf Tanko, revealed that out of the 15 flights expected for this year’s holy trip, 10 flights, marking the end of the scheduled flights for Egypt Air has so far airlifted 3,170 pilgrims to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

He said preparations are underway for National Air Service (NAS), a Saudi Arabian domestic and international airline, which has also been contracted by the NHC to begin airlifting the remaining pilgrims starting on Wednesday.

NAS, which will cater for the last five flights will take 419 pilgrims on each flight, this, organizers of this year’s Hajj noted, is likely the remaining 208 pilgrims who paid their monies but could not embark on the trip may get the opportunity this time round.

“We are working assiduously to airlift pilgrims who paid their monies last year but for some reason could not embark on the trip. Out of a total of 378 pilgrims, we have so far airlifted 170 of them, and we are working on airlifting the rest; that is, if we have space in the remaining flights,” the Chairman assured.

He urged prospective pilgrims to remain calm as the NHC will not leave any pilgrim that had paid money behind, adding “we will airlift everybody who have paid money for this year’s Hajj”

Alhaji Rauf Tanko lauded the Hajj agents for their cooperation with the Committee, which he said has resulted in smooth running of the process so far and has also brought sanity as compared to previous Hajj organization.

Reacting to reports of Saudi Arabian authorities retrieving large quantities of kola nut from Ghanaian pilgrims at Jeddah Airport, the Chairman stated that it is a known fact that kola nut is regarded as illicit drug in Saudi Arabia and has been banned over the years, therefore it was not the directive from the NHC to ban pilgrims from carrying cola.