President
Buhari congratulated Kaduna state for being chosen for the inaugural
flight and expressed hope that the 2015 hajj would be the best in the
history of Nigeria.
President Buhari on Sunday inaugurated the Muslim pilgrims flight to Saudi Arabia for 2015.
He was represented by Gov. Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State, who
performed the ceremony at the Kaduna International Airport, Kaduna.
"Our country is going through very challenging times and we
will need all the prayers we can have and the best place to do that for
the Muslim Umma is in Saudi Arabia," the President said.
President Buhari congratulated Kaduna state for being chosen for
the inaugural flight and expressed hope that the 2015 hajj would be the
best in the history of Nigeria.
He said the Federal Government was committed to reducing the cost of pilgrimage and involvement of government in the exercise.
"I agree with the views of the Supreme Council for Islamic
Affairs that hajj, if properly organized, should add value to the
Nigerian economy rather than take from it. Accordingly, I approve the
constitution of a very thorough and effective Central Coordinating Team
of Muslim Leaders to oversee the hajj this year," he said.
Buhari said the leader of the hajj coordinating team is the Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II.