The Executive Chairman of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON), Jalal Arabi, and the commission’s secretary, Abdullahi Kontagora, are currently in the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over allegations of mismanaging the N90 billion allocated for the 2024 Hajj subsidy, The PUNCH reported on Wednesday.
A document obtained by our correspondent reveals that the EFCC recovered a total of SR314,098 from the NAHCON chairman and other senior officials. The anti-corruption agency’s investigation uncovered that Jalal Arabi fraudulently overpaid himself and others from the N90 billion Hajj subsidy.
According to the document, the approved 2024 Hajj operational costs were set at $4,250 for the Chairman/CEO, $12,750 for the Commissioners, $3,825 for the Secretary, and $15,300 for the Directors/Chief of Staff. However, the EFCC alleges that Arabi overpaid himself and others significantly. The Chairman, who was entitled to SR15,929, instead received SR50,000; three commissioners, each supposed to get SR15,929, were given SR40,000 each; the Secretary received SR30,000 instead of SR14,336; and the Directors/Chief of Staff were paid SR30,000 each instead of the SR2,550 they were entitled to. The EFCC recovered a total of SR314,098 from these overpayments.
Arabi was initially questioned by the EFCC on July 29 and released on bail, but he was detained again on Wednesday for further questioning. A source within the EFCC, speaking on the condition of anonymity, confirmed that both the Secretary and Chairman of the commission are in custody and undergoing intense interrogation regarding the N90 billion subsidy and other allegations.
An exclusive document seen by our correspondent also revealed that a cash withdrawal of SR8,614,175.27 from the N90 billion allocated by the Federal Government is still unaccounted for by NAHCON. The document outlines that the Federal Government had released N90 billion to NAHCON for the 2024 Hajj operations, with N1,764,705,937.62 deducted as bank charges by the Central Bank of Nigeria. The remaining N88,235,294,063.72 was converted into USD 62,307,164.48 and transferred to NAHCON’s British SAAB Account in Saudi Arabia, which was further converted to SR233,527,252.47.
The document further details that the total sum of SR22,815,367.74 was withdrawn in cash from the British SAAB account by Abubakar Muhammed Lamin during the 2024 Hajj operation, and of this amount, SR8,614,175.27 remains unaccounted for.
