•Hajj
Kwara State government today flagged off the 2026 Hajj exercise with the airlift of the first batch of 374 pilgrims, alongside two National Hajj Commission of Nigeria officials and one state official, to Saudi Arabia.
A statement signed by Rafiu Ajakaye, chief press secretary to the governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, today said a total of 1,714 pilgrims from the state will participate in the 2026 Hajj.
It said, “374 intending pilgrims departed the General Tunde Idi-Agbon International Airport, Ilorin, aboard a Max Air aircraft, which took off at about 3 p.m. en route Madinah in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.”
While bidding the pilgrims farewell, AbdulRazaq urged them to conduct themselves properly in the Holy Land and represent the state and Nigeria honourably during the pilgrimage.
“Our message to pilgrims from Kwara State this year centres on the need for them to behave as good representatives and ambassadors of Kwara State in particular and Nigeria in general and to make sure they comply with all the laws and regulations of the host country, Saudi Arabia,” the governor said.
He was represented by his Special Adviser and Counsellor, Saadu Salaudeen.
He also urged the pilgrims to pray for peaceful coexistence in the country and in the state in particular.
He emphasised the need for all pilgrims to comply with Saudi Arabia’s laws and regulations and to adhere to directives issued by officials.
“We advise all of them to make sure they listen to the directives of Amirul Hajj, our father, His Royal Highness the Etsu Tsaragi, who is the Amirul Hajj for this year, leading the delegation, and all the officials of the Kwara State Pilgrims Board,” the governor said.
AbdulRazaq prayed to Allah to grant the pilgrims a hitch-free Hajj exercise and a safe return to Kwara State.
For his part, the State Amirul Hajj and Etsu Tsaragi, Abdullahi Aliyu, pledged to ensure the welfare of the pilgrims in line with the commitment made to the state government.
“I want to reiterate that when His Excellency announced my appointment as the leader of the delegation from the state, being Amirul Hajj, I made a pledge before him that we are not going to let him down and inshallah we are going to perform the roles that we are assigned to perform. We will make sure that Kwara pilgrims have the best this year and inshallah we are going to take care of their well-being over there,” he said.
Speaking with newsmen, the Executive Secretary of the Kwara State Pilgrims Welfare Board, Abdulkadir Abdulsalam, commended AbdulRazaq for approving all requests of the board to ensure adequate care for the pilgrims in Saudi Arabia.
“They will be going to Madinah straight away. We have our officials going with them, not only officials, we have medical doctors and nurses going with them, to be well taken care of.”
“We have contacted our kitchen. They are still there waiting for them to be welcomed and be well fed, inshallah. As you can see from the plane too, we are even going with our local food. I’m sure you saw from the cabin there, we are loading yam flour, pounded yam and garri, to ensure that at least they will not lose the taste of home food,” the Executive Secretary added.
