Catholic Bishops have held a meeting with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu at his Aso Rock Villa and called for an end to free pilgrimages to the Christian and Islam holy lands sponsored by states and the Federal governments.
Last year, the Federal Government subsidy on the 2024 Hajj was announced to be N90 billion.
The Ebonyi State Government approved ₦551.5 million to sponsor 46 Muslim pilgrims for the 2025 Hajj.
However, the Catholic Church leaders on Friday met the clergymen the President and counselled him otherwise.
The clerics’ made the visit to the President as they ended the First Plenary Meeting of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) held at the CSN Resource Centre, Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria, Durumi, Abuja, 8 -14 March 2025.
However, the President on Friday in Abuja hosted a delegation of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN).
They discussed several issues and Lucius Iwejuru Ugorji, Archbishop of Owerri and President of CBCNÂ Â spoke on behalf of the group.
On religious pilgrimages, Ugorji said that government should hands-off sponsorship to curtail waste and corruption.
“The government should allow religious groups to take full responsibility for organising pilgrimages. In their current structure, the national and state pilgrims’ boards serve neither their adherents nor the broader interest of the nation. You’re undoubtedly aware of the instances of corruption that have led to the removal of some board executives to ensure greater efficiency and accountability.
“We would propose that public funds be redirected towards pressing national needs,” the CBCN President said.
