The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) has given an ultimatum to illegal Hajj and Umrah operators to legalise their operations or face sanctions.
Addressing journalists, the Chief Information Officer of NAHCON, Mousa Ubandanwaki, said no fewer than 100 companies had been given marching orders by the commission to legalise their operations or risk prosecutions.
He said the commission’s team of inspectors currently on inspection and verification exercise across the count discovered that the companies were operating unregistered Hajj and Umrah companies.
“The breakdown of the figure shows that Kano has the largest number of unregistered operators with 77 of the 130 companies discovered not to have registered and this is followed by Lagos with 15 of the 74 inspected companies in the area.
“The ongoing inspection and verification across the country was part of the commission’s security architecture to end all forms of illegal activities by conmen who posed as Hajj and Umrah operators to swindle unsuspecting members of the public.
“It is our utmost desire to rid the Hajj and Umrah operator’s industry of quacks and conmen after this inspection and anyone that refuses to comply will have himself to blame,” he added.