THE Minister of Aviation, Sen.Hadi Sirika, has questioned the 50/50 Hajj passenger sharing arrangement between Saudi Arabia-owned airlines and those of other Hajj participating countries.
He stated this while addressing a gathering of the Saudi Arabian General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) delegates, who were led by its president, Abdulaziz A. Duailej.
The minister stated that in order to strengthen airlines and safeguard Nigerians traveling that route from issues, Hajj and Umrah operations needed to be streamlined under strict regulations.
He requested that the president of GACA take Nigeria’s unique circumstances into consideration, noting that a successful cooperation required negotiations, compromise, and an effort to find support and understanding from both parties.
The Chairman of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON), Zikrullah Kunle Hassan, asked for details on the range of activities that the Advance Payment Guarantee (APG) is intended to cover in accordance with GACA regulations.
He explained that the clarification was necessary as a result of the issue it had with the 2022 Hajj where NAHCON had asked for its APG to be used to allow Azman Air to begin airlift before the airline’s own APG would be approved, which resulted in the airline losing 11 days of operations because of the delay in its APG being credited in its IBAN account.
Hassan in a statement by NAHCON spokeswoman Fatima Sanda Usara, also asked GACA to notify NAHCON early enough on which Saudi-based airline would be used for the Hajj operations and to forward information on Saudi-recognized private charter flights so that the commission could keep an eye on their operations.
Additionally, he asked that security identity cards for NAHCON employees stationed at airports for Hajj operations be made easily accessible since the commission would soon start aviation-related preparations for the Hajj of 2023.
According to the GACA president, the visit was made to make sure that the 2023 Hajj preparations go smoothly and to give participating nations time to make plans to do so.
