President Bola Tinubu has removed Jalal Arabi from his position as the Executive Chairman of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON), following a probe into alleged financial mismanagement during the 2024 Hajj operations.
The President’s decision was made public by his spokesman, Ajuri Ngelale, who also announced the appointment of Professor Abdullahi Saleh Usman as the new head of the commission.
Professor Usman, a distinguished scholar with academic credentials from the University of Madinah and Peshawar University in Pakistan, is well-versed in Hajj operations.
His experience includes leading the Kano State Pilgrims Board, where he managed the state’s substantial quota of pilgrims, the largest in the country.
However, his appointment as the NAHCON chairman is subject to Senate confirmation.
In his statement, Ngelale emphasized the expectations placed on Professor Usman by President Tinubu.
“The President expects the new Chairman of NAHCON to discharge his duties with integrity, transparency, and utmost fidelity to the nation,” he said.
The dismissal of Arabi follows his entanglement in a scandal concerning the Federal Government’s N90 billion subsidy for the 2024 Hajj.
Both Arabi and the commission’s secretary, Abdullahi Kontagora, were arrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over discrepancies in the disbursement of funds meant for the pilgrimage.
An EFCC insider revealed that a total of 314,098 Saudi Riyals was recovered from the dismissed NAHCON chairman and other officials.
“The chairman fraudulently overpaid himself, the commissioners, the secretary, and the directors for the 2024 Hajj operational costs,” the source disclosed.
The breakdown showed that Arabi received SR50,000 instead of the SR15,929 he was entitled to, while three commissioners, meant to get SR15,929 each, were paid SR40,000 each. The secretary and directors also received inflated payments far beyond their entitlements, with the excess amounts being recovered by the EFCC.
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