Former Member of State at the Ministry of Interior, Nana Obiri-Boahene has blasted the National Hajj Board and the ruling NDC government for leaving behind some prospective Hajj pilgrims in this year’s Hajj exercise.
According to Nana Obiri-Boahene, the NDC government and the organizers must bow their heads in shame for poor organization of the exercise.
His comments come as a result of some 600 pilgrims failed to make it to Mecca after spending several days at the Hajj village.
President Mills, addressing a large gathering of Muslims to mark this year’s Eid-Al Adha festival on Tuesday, said he would ensure that the problems encountered by Hajj pilgrims this year becomes a thing of the past
However, speaking on the Citi Eyewitness News on Tuesday, November 16, Nana Obiri-Boahene said the NDC government made what he described as “political capital” out of the failure of the NPP government when it was in power to organize successful Hajj trips for prospective Hajj pilgrims.
He said although such exercise should not be politicized, the NDC government must bow their heads in shame and must ensure that such an incident does not occur in the coming years.
“As if it was just yesterday when NPP was in power and we had these developments some leading people of the NDC visited the Hajj village and made some uncomplimentary remarks about the NPP, some even went to the extent of making some derogatory remarks about the then Vice President, Aliu Mahama”. “NDC made a political capital out of it, we don’t have to read politics into this but the organizers have to bow their heads in shame, they must bow their heads in shame all of them including the NDC”.
In a sharp rebuttal, MP for Madina Abokobi, Alhaji Amadu Sorogho noted that the NPP sabotaged this year’s Hajj by sending the committee to court.
“We realize that there were certain machinations, I will not mention names from the NPP but you are aware that one person sent the Hajj committee to court citing Aliu Mahama as the one who initiated this court issues as far back as 2000, the person did not see the need to write to us to tell us that there was something happening”. “All the person decided was to wait when everything was set for the Hajj to begin then he sent the Hajj committee to court, for an injunction to be placed on our money, that is freeze our accounts so that the Hajj committee could not work”.
Source: citifmonline.com