By Allan Nawal/Philippine News Agency
DAVAO CITY – The first and second batches of Muslim Filipino pilgrims to Mecca in Saudi Arabia will be leaving on Wednesday (July 10, 2019) and Thursday (July 11, 2019), the National Commission on Muslim Filipinos said Tuesday.
Dimapuno Datu Ramos Jr., chief of NCMF’s Bureau of External Relations, said the pilgrims will be spending their day on Tuesday (July 9, 2019) for their pre-departure orientation seminar at the Golden Mosque in Quiapo.
Datu Ramos Jr. said the NCMF, along with several government officials and members of the diplomatic corps, will be sending off the pilgrims at the NAIA Terminal 1 on the day of their departure.
Among those expected, he said, were NCMF Secretary Saidamen Pangarungan, who is also the amerul haj or head of the pilgrims; Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin; and Saudi Ambassador to the Philippines, Dr. Abdulla bin Nasser al-Bussairy.
A total of 7,163 Muslim Filipinos will be participating in this year’s hajj, which will take place from August 10. The hajj is among the five pillars of Islam and is prescribed for those who can afford it – financially and physically.
“The passports, tickets, Hajj ID cards, and the printed Hajj visa have been distributed by the Bureau of Pilgrimage and Endowment to the shieks yesterday at the NCMF Central Office,” Datu Ramos Jr. said.
He said all pilgrims will also be provided free subscriber module identification (SIM) cards, which they can use to contact their families while they are in Saudi Arabia.
“We hope that the pilgrims will be satisfied with the reforms and changes done for this year, which were in response to the complaints received by the NCMF and Secretary Pangarungan last 2018 during the Post-Hajj Workshop Conference,” Datu Ramos Jr. said.
For the latest updates about this story, visit the Philippine News Agency website
