By East African Gazette
Wandegeya
The pilgrims who are travelling to Saudi Arabia for Hijj have been advised to maintain discipline if they want to have a successful Hija.
Prince Kassim Nakibinge told pilgrims to strictly follow the guidelines given by the travel agents who were certified by the Uganda Bureau of Hajj Affairs Association (UBHA).
Nakibinge said” We still have unregistered travel agents who are against the arrangement of registering with UBHA but transport pilgrims to Saudi Arabia. Some time back the government tried to transport Muslims, but failed as they used to get stranded after paid their money”.
He made this during a briefing of 1600 Muslims travelling for Hijja in Saudi Arabia through 54 certified travel agents under UBHA at Wandegeya Mosque in Kampala on May 31 2024.
He said they agreed with the government all travel agents go through UBHA to ensure quality transport services and safe accommodation..
“If you have ever travelled abroad, the procedures and systems are different from those who travel to Saudi Arabia if you want to achieve your purpose of making a hijja”.
Prince Nakibinge told UBHA to carry out God’s work peacefully and to ensure all registered travel agents work together for successful Hijja.
He said the spirit of bid farewell for people going for Hija started by Sheikh Abdullah Ssekimwanyi and Abubakari Kibali who were the first Ugandans to make pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia in the 1920s.
He asserted that by working together it helps to eliminate people who want to fight and destroy the leadership of the Association
“It not advisable to travel when you have debts, but it is allowed if you alert them because you return to a different person.
The Imam of Wandegeya Mosque in Kampala, Kasule Muhammad said Uganda had 44 million people as we wait for the recent statistics and only 14 percent are Muslims. In the World we have a population of 8 billion people with 2billion Muslims
Sheikh Zakaria Kyewalyanga, Chairman of the association, said Saudi Arabia introduced measures to follow in preparation for the journey to Mecca. We started in January and by the time of the deadline, we would have completed 95 percent. Kyewaklyanga said the UBHA had certified 54 travel agents who will be transporting Muslims to Mecca.
The Civil Aviation Authority Spokesperson (CAA) Vianney Luggya in an interview with the East African Gazette said they have organized a
special parking space for all the pilgrims heading to Mecca in Saudi Arabia and their family members.
Luggya said travelers’ should keep time and follow the instructions of the costs on what they have to buy that doesn’t attract taxes.
He advised UBHA to provide stickers to those intending to travel under the association because it is only those with stickers who will be allowed to go beyond the search point.
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