By Godwill Arthur- Mensah
Accra, May 27, GNA–The Member of Parliament for Tolon, Mr Habib Iddrisu, has expressed concerns about some accommodation and feeding challenges facing some Muslim Hajj pilgrims in Saudi Arabia.
In a statement made on the floor of Parliament on Tuesday, May 27, Mr Iddrisu said currently some Ghanaian Hajj pilgrims had been evicted from their hotel rooms in Saudi Arabia and were sleeping in insanity environment due to poor accommodation arrangement put in place by the current Hajj Taskforce.
The lawmaker alleged that some previous government appointees on the Hajj Board were dismissed by the Government, which had denied institutional memory to the organisation of this year’s Hajj.
Mr Iddrisu, who is also the First Deputy Minority Chief Whip, said some of the Hajj pilgrims could not get food to eat and were experiencing extreme difficulties in Mecca and urged the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other relevant state institutions to intervene to restore the dignity of Ghanaian Hajj pilgrims in Saudi Arabia.
The legislator said although the Mahama-led Government had reduced Hajj fares from GHS 75,000 to GHS 62,000 in this year’s Hajj, the reduction in the Hajj air tickets had not impacted positively on the pilgrims as they were at the moment stranded in foreign land.
Mr Iddrisu underscored the need to depoliticise the organisation of Hajj and restore dignity to its planning.
Over 5,000 Ghanaian Hajj pilgrims are currently taking part in this year’s Hajj in the holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia.
Hajj is a Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca and is one of the five pillars of Islam.
It is expected that all Muslims will make at least one trip to the holy city of Mecca in their lifetime if they can afford to do so.
GNA
Edited by Edward Nana Asare