By Joyce Remi-Babayeju
About 280 intending Christian pilgrims from Taraba and Gombe States have been airlifted by the Nigerian Christian Pilgrim Commission, NCPC from the Yola International Airport on 26 December, 2022 to Israel and Jordan.
The Executive Secretary Nigerian Christian Pilgrim Commission ,Rev Dr Yakubu Pam who was at the Airport to witness and address the intending pilgrims was highly delighted by the landmark airlift of intending pilgrims from Yola International Airport , being the first time ever when intending pilgrims would be airlifted directly to the Holy Land since his assumption of office in 2020.
He thanked the Taraba State governor, Arch. Darius Ishaiku for sponsoring such number of christians to the Holy land despite all odds asdescribed him as a Pilgrimage friendly Governor.
Also he lauded the Governor of Gombe state, Alhaji Inuwa Abubarkar for supporting the christians in the state to embark on Holy Pilgrimage at a time like this.
He explained that though the Governor being a moslem , he saw the need to sponsor christians so that they could go to the Holy land to pray.
Rev. Pam admonished the intending pilgrims to be good Ambassadors of Nigeria while in the Holy land.
He said,” we are concern with the image of Nigeria during Pilgrimage and as such you should conduct yourselves decently while on Pilgrimage”, adding that the good image of Nigeria outside the country is above that of any pilgrim or their states.
Furthermore, he cautioned all intending pilgrims to shun abscondment as the Commission had put every mechanism in place to make abscondment impossible.
Rev Pam further told the intending pilgrims that he was proud of them for being part of the 2022 December pilgrimage to Israel and Jordan and for having faith in Nigeria.
He hinted that the iterenary of the pilgrims starts commences on arrival in Jordan where they would commence their Pilgrimage exercise, afterwards they would proceed to Israel to continue their visit to the Holy Sites there.
Chairman Adamawa State Christian Pilgrims Welfare Board, Bishop Peter Bartimaios thanked the Executive Secretary , Nigerian Christian Pilgrim Commission, Rev Dr Yakubu Pam for the choice of Yola International Airport for the airlift of the intending pilgrims of Taraba and Gombe state .
He lauded the NCPC boss for his proactive leadership and urged intending pilgrims to make judicious use of this opportunity to pray for themselves and Nigeria in the Holy land.
Chairman Taraba State Christian Pilgrims Welfare Board, Rev. Isaiah Magaji congratulated the Taraba intending pilgrims for the opportunity provided by the Executive Governor of Taraba State for them to go on holy Pilgrimage to Israel and Jordan as
he commended the NCPC boss for his visionary leadership in sustaining Christian Pilgrimage in Nigeria.
The Federal Commissioner representing the North East on the Board of NCPC , Rev Dr Musa Gelengu thanked the Executive Secretary Nigerian Christian Pilgrim Commission, Rev Dr Yakubu Pam for his dynamic leadership and courage.
He advised the intending pilgrims to be spiritually alert in the Holy land and come back spiritually and morally transformed.
In a statement issued by Celestine Toruka, Deputy Director/ Head of Media at the Commission, the airlift of intending pilgrims of Taraba and Gombe state was the second batch of airlift to be conducted by NCPC in the on going 2022 December pilgrimage exercise to Israel and Jordan.
The first batch departed for the Holy land on 16th December, 2022 from the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu , and returned on 24th December without any single case of abscondment.
The intending pilgrims of Taraba and Gombe state departed the Yola International Airport at exactly 02:03am on 27 December, 2022 to Amman, the Kingdom of Jordan.
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