Chinyere Abiaziem 
The Justice Development and Peace Commission (JDPC) has said state sponsorship of individuals on pilgrimage was in contrast to the pilgrimage intention which connotes self-sacrifice. The Federal Government approved 90 billion dollars to support Nigerian Muslims as a subsidy to the fair fare hike so they could attend the annual pilgrimage to the holy land (Saudi Arabia).
The JDPC Director, Rev. Fr. Raymond Anoliefo, made the call in a response during the organisation’s workshop to commemorate Nigeria’s 25 years of democracy in Lagos and to evaluate the nation’s governance to chart the way forward. with the theme “25 Years of Democracy, is Nigeria on its Way to Economic Prosperity”.
Anoliefo, who decried the huge taxpayers’ money voted yearly for pilgrimage, said that such funds could be channeled into health care for the people, education, pipe-borne water and social security in the society. He noted, “Ploughing the nation’s scarce resources that should have been used to service few privileged individuals in the name of pilgrimage is amoral and should be stopped. Such funds can be used to equip and resuscitate the nation’s nearly moribund health centers with needed drugs to treat people.
