By Muhammad Ibrahim,Sokoto

Sokoto State Pilgrims Welfare Agency has reiterated the Dec. 31, 2023 deadline for payment of Hajj fees.

It, therefore, appealed to Local Government Hajj Registration Officers in the state to redouble efforts in educating all intending pilgrims on the need to hasten up.

The Director of Administration of the agency, Alhaji Ladan Ibrahim, made the appeal during a meeting with Assistant Hajj Registration officers of the twenty three Local Government areas in the state.

According to the Director of Administration, December deadline has been pegged by the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) as the final date for registering intending pilgrims for the 2024 Hajj.

According to him, remittance of all Hajj fares of intending pilgrims must be sent to NAHCON on or before Dec. 31, to enable the commission plan for next year’s Hajj.

He said the essence of meeting is to know the number of intending pilgrims registed to date, amount collected and total remittance of each local Government to the agency.

The statement by head of Information and Communication of the Agency Faruk Umar further said Alhaji Ladan Ibrahim also pointed out that the registration officers were closer to the intending pilgrims, hence the need to clarify the implication of missing the registration deadline.

According to him, based on the new guidelines, the issuance of visas would commence two months before the Hajj operations, saying that the Saudi Arabian Hajj calendar has changed.

He said, because of this change, there is the need for all the intending pilgrims to register before the end of the December deadline.

Also, in their separate remarks the Director of Operations Alhaji Abdulganiyu Muhammad and that of finance Alhaji Nasiru Abubakarof said that the agency would continue to collaborate with the Local Government councils in educating all the intending pilgrims on the new policies introduced by the NAHCON and Saudi Arabian authorities towards transforming Hajj exercise.