What Recession! Nigerians And State Government Spend Over N136.5bn On Hajj

An investigation conducted by Punch Newspaper has revealed that at least N136.5bn has been spent on Hajj in 2017 by state governments and individuals despite the current recession in the country.According to the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria, no fewer than 91,000 Nigerians had arrived in Saudi Arabia out of the over 1.7 million foreign pilgrims in the country to perform this year’s Hajj. Meanwhile, the average Hajj fare approved by NAHCON to states for each traveller is N1.5m.
For example, information made available by NAHCON showing the approved 2017 Hajj seats and fares per state disclosed the package for travellers from Nasarawa State as N1,544,659.85; Niger, N1,525,483.30; Ondo, N1,485,096.07; Katsina, N1,498,502.70; Bauchi, N1,523,122.41; Plateau, N1,529,036.80; Sokoto, N1,521,461.65; and Kwara, N1,501,571.27, among others.Therefore, at an average fare of N1.5m, 91,000 Nigerians would have spent a minimum of N136.5bn on the exercise, with part of it coming from public purse provided by state governments.