Hajj Committee announces arrival of 2014 Hajj excess luggage

Alhaji Ibrahim Abdul-Rauf Tanko, Chairman of the National Hajj Committee (NHC), has announced the arrival of the excess luggage of Pilgrims of the 2014 Hajj to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

He said the luggage which arrived at the Tema Harbour three weeks ago, had been cleared and brought to the Hajj Village near the Kotoka International Airport to be claimed by owners.

Alhaji Tanko told the Ghana News Agency in an interview in Accra that all pieces of luggage had been brought and that none was left in Saudi Arabia.

He said in the interest of transparency, and to ensure a smooth identification and collection process, pilgrims who did not have their goods in the previous consignment that came, should come along with their traveling passports, tags and receipts for identification and collection.

Alhaji Tanko said: “this is the last batch of goods for the 2014 Hajj, …essentially these ones are for pilgrims that came with the 10th, 11th, and last flights…we are appealing to the owners to come with their particulars and pick them up,” he stated.

The Chairman added that for easy identification, the goods have been assigned with tags, names of owners, places where the pilgrims hail from, and phone numbers of the pilgrims.

This year’s hajj organization under the Chairmanship of Alhaji Tanko proved to be one of the most peaceful and hitch-free Hajj in recent times.

Unlike previous years, when pilgrims were left at the airport at the mercy of the weather for so long, and issues of missing luggage, this year’s organization and indeed, some left over pilgrims of 2011 and 2012, were given the opportunity to embark on the holy trip.

Officials of the NHC are expected to hold a press briefing and to submit a comprehensive report and officially close activities marking the 2014 Hajj.