Nigeria Newspapers Online

The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) and Mashariq Al Dhahabia, the Saudi Arabia contracted to serve Nigerians Pilgrims during the 2025 Hajj, have signed an amended contract agreement. 

Speaking during a press briefing on Saturday, the Chairman of NAHCON, Prof. Abdullahi Usman Saleh, said the amended agreement would mean Mashariq Al Dhahabia would no longer cater for the 95,000 intending pilgrims from Nigeria.

Rather, the company would take care of 52,000 pilgrims that the commission anticipates would partake in the exercise.

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Daily Trust had reported that Mashariq Al Dhahabia threatened to sue NAHCON for breach of contract owing to the commission contracting other companies to cater for Nigerian pilgrims in Mashair, the five days of the Hajj rituals performed at tents in Muna, Muzdhalifa and Arafah.

The company had claimed that NAHCON only allowed it to register 26,287 on Saudi Arabia’s NUSUK system for international pilgrims’ services, while calling for a meeting to dialogue on the breach between 20 days of its letter, a failure would resort to a court arbitration.

But NAHCON responded that it split the number of pilgrims the company would serve during the pilgrimage due to some operational challenges it identified and to prevent monopoly in Hajj affairs.

Speaking at the press briefing, the chairman said Mashariq Al Dhahabia, led by its CEO, Muhammad Hassan, visited Nigeria for a courtesy visit and to sign the amended agreement.

“Everybody can clearly see that there is no way we can get the 95,000. So, the registered pilgrims must now be included in the agreement instead of the 95,000 we are looking forward to. So it calls for amendment because it has been quoted in the previous agreement that we are coming with 95,000 pilgrims, which is not possible.

“So, now that they have closed the registration of pilgrims and space from Saudi Arabia, we are able to just do only 52,000. So that’s the only amendment we did in the agreement, just to quote the real figure we will be having at the Mashair this time around.”

He also assured all intending pilgrims from Nigeria this year that NACHON had completed all the arrangements and would conduct a smooth and successful Hajj operation “by the grace of Allah.”

On his part, Hassan said the meeting was to improve the relationship between the two entities and to engage in strategies that would best serve Nigerian pilgrims.

He added that both parties had settled all contractual agreements.