Ability to pay not enough for pilgrimage – Uja

Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Christian Pilgrim Commission (NCPC), Rev.
Uja Tor Uja, has said that the ability to pay for pilgrimage “is no longer a suffi cient qualifi cation to go on pilgrimage.” He disclosed this recently during the Expression of Interest (Bid Opening) for air carriers and ground handlers for 2018 Christian Pilgrimage exercise at the Commission’s Corporate Headquarters in Abuja.
Uja stressed that the Commission had decided that “money, a guarantor, or interest to travel is no longer a suffi cient qualification for someone to go on pilgrimage, but a decision to return to Nigeria to make a contribution to the development of the country is now what qualifi es a candidate to go on pilgrimage and to that effect; therefore, a lot of stringent measures have been put in place to make sure that abscondment becomes very difficult and a thing of the past.” “We have introduced what we call extreme vetting and also a four-step process that ensures that anybody with a scar, no matter how little, will not be allowed to go on pilgrimage.
The extreme vetting begins, especially with some of the states we call the redline states, and known to have the highest propensity figures of abscondment in the past.” “For all those states, we say no to all your candidates until any candidate shows himself worthy of travelling by supplying a guarantee from the government or a high government offi cial without which no matter the amount of money you have you, you will not travel.” According to him, the Commission has introduced a compulsory orientation programme for all intending pilgrims before departure.
“This orientation programme is going to include a rescreening exercise to ensure that all those who passed through the net undesirably in the first screening will still be caught in the second, third screening and fourth part which will be an observation on arrival to Israel either at the hotel or at the airport.
“Anybody that gives a wrong impression about pilgrimage exercise will not be accepted and will be repatriated immediately