The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) expressed concern about Nigerian pilgrims persistently bringing kola nuts into the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia illegally.
Labaran Abdullahi, NAHCON’s Head of National Reception Team in Madinah, mentioned that this behavior is causing problems for their operations, resulting in delays at airports.
“The Saudi government is discouraging people coming with kola nuts. These are the major issues. We always tell the state pilgrims coordinators to always discourage the pilgrims coming with kola nuts because that is what is giving us some delays but we are working smoothly with them. There has been cooperation between us and the pilgrims,” he said.
He added that another problem it is facing is pilgrims keeping their passport in their bags after clearance in Nigeria.
“Some of them will mistakenly put their passport in their hand luggage, so it will become difficult to clear them in Saudi Arabia due to the luggage being moved to a waiting bus or taken to their hotels,” he said.
Nevertheless, he noted that the process has been smooth thanks to cooperation from the Saudi government.
He emphasized that the commission aims for a peaceful operation, ensuring the satisfaction of the pilgrims.
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