Hajj Operations: The Need to Do things Right
The recent directive by National Hajj Commission to airlines seeking to air lift pilgrims to Saudi Arabia, to engage reputable banks as guarantors against any failure in this year's Hajj airlift is definitely a step in the right direction. For the past several years, the conduct of the annual Hajj in this country has remained problematic. Even though many factors account for the failure to conduct a hitch-free Hajj exercise in this country, the insouciant attitude of airlines operating the Hajj route has always been a critical factor in this unsuccessful operation.
The recent policy, which aims at alleviating the problems and suffering usually encountered by pilgrims both to and from the Holy land, will imply an airline bringing a bank that can stand for it in case it failed to airlift pilgrims on time both here and in Sandi Arabia. According to the Hajj commission chairman, Alhaji Muhammadu Bello, the moment such a failure is recorded, the Bank would be expected to provide the funds needed to engage another airline immediately. The aim is to ensure that the airlines take the whole exercise with the seriousness it deserves and perform their duties with dispatch. Additionally, the airlines have been directed to charter only aircraft with the ability to carry 300 passengers as opposed to previous situations when they were allowed to operate with a 200 seat capacity aircraft which cause much delay in completing the exercise.
These developments will no doubt make the airlines strive to improve their performance and cause minimal, if any inconveniences to pilgrims. The fact that airlines will now be responsible for the welfare of all stranded pilgrims as contained in the new directives also means that they will be more serious about timely airlift, to avoid incurring unnecessary expenditure.
But commendable as they are, these directives may not be effective unless the Commission puts in place mechanisms to ensure compliance. We all know that the problem of Hajj in this country is multi-faceted and therefore handing the airlines angle is only a part of it. Government officials and other big shots prefer to go to Hajj late and then leave early, thereby tampering with the flight schedules to the detriment of ordinary pilgrims. The Commission must have a way of ensuring strict adherence of flight schedules by all pilgrims. Early preparation for Hajj, which means that state pilgrims boards have arranged which local government pilgrims leave when and by which airline, means that no pilgrims will be made to spend days at camps or airports both here and in Jeddah.
Unfortunately, late preparation is what our pilgrim's boards are known for, and this usually means things will be done haphazardly, resulting in the chaos that brings untold hardship to pilgrims.
A holistic approach to solving the problem of Hajj airlift, will entail the commission sending similar directives to state pilgrims' boards to organize a schedule to their flights accordingly and stick to it.
Nigerians often wonder how organized pilgrims' airlift is in Asian Countries, where their pilgrims never have to spend the night in Jeddah airport. The answer of course, is organized flight scheduling which ensures that a pilgrim leaves as soon as he or she arrives at the airport. Nigerians surely can achieve this if the Hajj Commission's directives are enforced by giving teeth to them and blacklisting airlines, on the one hand and state governments, on the other, that refuse to measure up to required expectations. The untold suffering caused to Nigerian pilgrims over the years by the sloppiness of airlines and the embarrassment caused to this country by bungling Hajj officials must be brought to an end once and for all. Strict enforcement and punitive sanctions, such as envisaged by the National Hajj commission, must be put in place now. Hopefully, at the end of the day, Nigerians will begin to witness a stress-free Hajj. This has been the dream for decades.