The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has taken two senior officials of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) into custody over yet another brewing fraud scandal tied to the 2025 Hajj operations.
Highly placed EFCC sources confirmed the detention on Tuesday, but kept sealed lips on the size of the alleged missing funds.
They are with us. We asked them to return the money they took, but they have yet to do so. That is why they remain in our custody, one source told Gidipoint News.
The arrests have thrown NAHCON into fresh controversy, barely a year after its former Chairman, Jalal Arabi, was forced out amid the N90bn Hajj subsidy scandal.
In a statement, NAHCON stopped short of confirming the arrests, only stressing that it remains committed to transparency, due process and cooperation with anti-graft agencies.
The commission would not shield any staff or process found wanting, said Fatima Usara, Assistant Director of Information, who signed the statement on behalf of Chairman Abdullahi Usman.
She however cautioned the public and media against speculations and media trial, insisting that the truth would eventually come out.
But with EFCC’s no-nonsense stance and the Commission’s history of scandals, observers believe the storm around NAHCON is far from over.
