Auwalu Umar and Abdulkadir Badsha Mukhtar
4 November 2009
Medina — Several banks in the holy Saudi Arabian city of Medina had their doors broken and their glass windows smashed yesterday when thousands of Nigerian pilgrims stormed the financial houses to cash their travellers' cheques.
Some of the banks that recorded smashed windows include NCB, Riyad Bank, SABB, Saudi Hollandi Bank, Banque Saudi Fransi, Arab National Bank and Bank Aljazira. The Saudi authorities formally protested to the Nigerian Embassy in Riyadh yesterday about the Nigerian pilgrims' conduct.
There were rowdy scenes in those banks when the Nigerian pilgrims, who's Basic Travelling Allowances [BTAs] were in travellers' cheques, descended on them. Daily Trust reports that this year's pilgrims found it difficult to cash their cheques as soon as they arrived in Jeddah, as it used to be in the past. Daily Trust could not however establish the reasons for the new exchange regime.
Officials from the Saudi Central Bank went to the Nigeria Hajj Mission in Medina last Sunday to formally register their complaints over the attitude of some Nigerian pilgrims in the banks and to appeal to Nigerian officials to prevail on the pilgrims on the need to be patient in whatever they do while in the holy land.
Head of the Nigeria Mission in Medina and National Commissioner in the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) Alhaji Musa Isa confirmed receiving the formal protest, saying measures have already been taken to arrest the situation. He said he was not happy over the incident and the mission is doing its best to project the good image of Nigeria in the holy land.
The Saudi banks do not attend to pilgrims everyday of the week, as there are specific days during which the pilgrims can go to such banks and cash their cheques. Daily Trust findings in Medina showed that up till now, a substantial number of pilgrims from Nigeria are yet to cash their cheques, three days after their arrival in Medina. Daily Trust checks found that some pilgrims had to use Nigerian currency to buy food from Nigerians living in Medina.
Some of the pilgrims interviewed expressed their anger over the situation, saying life as a pilgrim in Medina is very difficult, as they cannot eat well as required by the regulations guiding hajj operations.
It was observed that only pilgrims from Nigeria could be seen queuing in the banks. The most hit in this situation are women and the aged who could not understand the financial transaction without a guide.
A woman pilgrim from Katsina, Hajiya Fatsima Matazu told Daily Trust that she could not cash her BTA because of the long queue at the banks three days after her arrival. She said her local government pilgrims centre officer did not help matters, as he was nowhere to be found.
Other pilgrims from Jigawa and Abuja equally complained of the lackadaisical attitude of their officials. They called on the officials to emulate such states such as Zamfara, Niger and Kano, which they said do the currency exchange on behalf of their respective pilgrims.
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