NAHCON to accredit journalists covering Hajj

Chairman of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON), Abdullahi Muhammad, has said the “Commission intends to accredit journalists that will cover the yearly pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia in order to ‘sanitise’ Hajj reporting.”
Muhammad, who said this at the public presentation of Independent Hajj Reporters (IHR) news website and awards ceremony yesterday in Abuja, decried the current situation whereby journalists, who are sponsored by various state Muslim pilgrims’ welfare boards and agencies sometimes ”work at cross purposes.” According to him, the Commission intends to select journalists that will report Hajj and train them on the intricacies of covering the religious rites.
“If FIFA has to accredit journalists that report the world cup, it is absolutely necessary for the commission to accredit journalists that should cover Hajj,” he said. Justifying the need for the accreditation, Muhammad said there are reports that “many endanger the diplomatic relations between Nigeria and Saudi Arabia which a journalist may not be aware of.”
The official implored journalists to report strictly on Hajj matters if they go to the Holy Land and should desist from reporting issues that have diplomatic implications. Muhammad praised IHR for pioneering the first website in the country that is dedicated to Hajj and Umrah, hoping that the news portal will provide credible information that will counter the misinformation in the media about the yearly pilgrimage.
According to the NAHCON boss, Independent Hajj Reporters deserve financial and material support as well as support in terms of ideas from the Muslim ummah. He also advised that IHR should not shut its doors to ideas from outside. (Premium Times)

Leave a Reply