|
Over 500 Ghanaian pilgrims stranded in
Saudi Arabia
By Masahudu Ankiilu Kunateh,
Ghanadot
Reports reaching Ghanadot from Saudi Aradia
have revealed that over 500 Ghanaian
pilgrims who travelled to this year’s Hajj
on a Nigeria cargo airline are stranded in
Saudi Arabia.
This is because the airline is unable to
return the pilgrims as agreed.
They were scheduled to have arrived in Ghana
last Friday but information reaching Joy
News indicates the airline is focusing on
its Nigerian passengers to the detriment of
the Ghanaians.
Director of operations of the National Hajj
Council Alhaji Amadu Sorogho told Joy FM, a
private radio station in Accra , saying, the
council is in serious negotiations with the
officials of the airline to ensure the
pilgrims are brought back home safely.
He explained the stranded pilgrims are
unhappy with the Nigerian airline for
failing to honour its part of the deal but
said they were in no desperate mood.
According to him, the council is taking good
care of the pilgrims as efforts continue to
resolve the problem.
“The pilgrims have not been allowed to leave
Madina so we are paying extra accommodation,
they are all sleeping in their hotels, they
have every facility you can think of waiting
for the confirmation before buses will be
provided for them to come to the airport.”
The new development appears to have breached
what was initially thought to be an
incident-free hajj this year.
Over 2000 pilgrims attended this year’s
pilgrimage to Mecca, with the first batch of
254 returning home safely last week.
Ghanadot
|
