Osun state on Monday started the vaccination of intending Hajj pilgrims to Saudi Arabia against COVID-19.
Mr. Tajudeen Lawal, the Commissioner for Home Affairs, said the exercise is in compliance with the directive of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) in line with the safety guidelines of National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA).
The NAHCON had earlier asked all the 36 States ‘pilgrims’ boards to urgently give COVID-19 vaccination to all 2021 intending pilgrims, so as to meet up with the average of 12 weeks interval, to take two rounds of vaccination before the Hajj exercise.
The state had recorded many successes and received several commendations and honour for its annual outstanding performance, assured the intending pilgrims of seamless and hitch-free exercise.
“I have to applaud our amiable Governor for his prompt support over the years.
He has shown to us that he is a leader, a worthy leader whose passion and love for the welfare and general well-being of the citizens is second to none.
“As you all know, Nigeria and other parts of the world couldn’t perform Hajj last year. We are considering combining registered intending pilgrims for the year 2020 and 2021.
The Administration of Governor Oyetola would continue to do the needful and would prioritise the people’s welfare as it has been doing since inception.
“So far so good, about 800 people have registered and hopefully, all of them would be vaccinated in line with the directive of the NAHCON.
“I am appealing to our people to take this exercise seriously and conduct themselves with topmost Omoluabi ethos whenever they are in the Holy Land because this is what we are known for“, Lawal added.
The administrative secretary of the Osun state Muslim Pilgrims Board, Mr. Bolaji Sanni, mentioned that the exercise was designed to adhere to and fulfill all necessary safety requirements as laid down by the health authorities.
According to him, the intending pilgrims are expected to take two doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines before they leave Nigeria for Saudi Arabia.
“Since the Hajj exercise for this year is expected to commence in June, we are under obligation to carry out the vaccination exercise to meet up with the deadline.
“This first phase of the vaccination exercise will end by April while the second dose will be taken early June as the intending pilgrims are expected to depart Nigeria for Saudi Arabia by the middle of June.
“We are ready to complete the exercise for all of them. Though we have the combined list of 2020 and 2021 running to 800 registered intending pilgrims so far, some are still registering and we are committed to ensuring that everybody is fairly treated,”Sanni added.
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