The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has taken into custody the Executive Chairman of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON), Jalal Arabi, and the commission’s Secretary, Abdullahi Kontagora.
The two top officials, Arabi and Kontagora, are facing investigation and detention over alleged mismanagement of the N90 billion allocated for the 2024 Hajj subsidy.
According to report by The PUNCH, the anti-graft agency disclosed that a “total of SR314,098 was recovered” from the NAHCON chairman and other high-ranking officials.
The EFCC’s investigation revealed that from the N90 billion Hajj subsidy, Arabi fraudulently overpaid himself and others beyond the authorised operational costs.
The document further specified the approved 2024 Hajj operational costs for various officials in the budget as follows: Chairman/CEO – $4,250, Commissioners – $12,750, Secretary – $3,825, and Directors/Chief of Staff – $15,300.
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However, the EFCC alleged that the chairman and others were fraudulently overpaid. The chairman was entitled to SR15,929 but received SR50,000; three commissioners, each supposed to receive SR15,929, were paid SR40,000 each; the secretary received SR30,000 instead of SR14,336; and the Directors/Chief of Staff were paid SR30,000 instead of the SR2,550 they were entitled to. In total, SR314,098 was recovered from them.
Days ago parallelfact reported that officials of the Hajj commission were also arrested by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission over alleged mismanagement or diversion of the N90 billion subsidy
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