A Nigerian pilgrim from Dutse Local Government Area of Jigawa State, Abba Limawa, 52, has returned 10,500 Russian rubles, $800 and 690 Saudi Riyals, he found, to the authorities in Makkah.

Mr Limawa handed over the different currencies to the Executive Chairman, National Hajj Commission of Nigeria, Jalal Arabi, during the post-Afarat conference held on Wednesday in Makkah, Saudi Arabia.

The pilgrims explained that he found the money inside a waist bag, while on his way to pray at the Masjid Haram (Mosque).

He stated, “Initially, I wanted to ignore the waist bag and moved to the mosque, but on a second thought, I said it might belong to a Nigerian, especially some of our old women. So, I decided to pick it, and I proceeded to the mosque. When I returned to my accommodation, I opened the bag and discovered that there was no Nigerian currency and no sign that it belonged to a Nigerian. Immediately, I approached one of the officials of the Jigawa State Pilgrims Welfare Boards, narrated the story and presented the money to him. From there, he commended me for showing an exemplary character and honesty and told me that he would hand over the money to the NAHCON to ensure that the owner gets his or her money.’’

Responding, Mr Arabi commended Mr Limawa for being honest and projecting the image of Nigeria positively at the international arena.

Earlier, in his presentation on the outcome of the just concluded hajj, the NAHCON boss explained that the aim of the post-Afarat conference was to review what had transpired.

He stated, “This will enable us to have a sincere post-mortem of what we did at the battlefield and improve on the success recorded.”

Mr Arabi disclosed that the Saudi government released the time-table and timeline for the 2025 Hajj operation on Tuesday.

He said, “Perhaps by Thursday we would have known what they allocate (Hajj slots allocation) to each nation of the world, how the visas will commence. But interestingly for the first time, they (Saudi authorities) opened the e-portal as of Tuesday.”

He, therefore, called on the states pilgrims’ welfare boards, tour operators and other stakeholders to take notes of the development.

Also, the Head of Aviation of NAHCON, Goni Sanda, said that three flights conveying pilgrims from Kebbi, Nasarawa and the Federal Capital Territory would take off to Nigeria on June 22.

(NAN)