New Hajj Village construction is an NPP legacy project – former Hajj Board Chair claims
Accra: Former Chairman of the Ghana Hajj Board, Ben Abdallah Banda, has urged the government to acknowledge the construction of a new Hajj Village as a legacy project of the previous government.
In a Facebook post on Friday, he explained that the process for the construction of the project was initiated by the Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo-Bawumia government as far back as 2017 through the then Minister for Aviation, the late Kofi Adda, and later the Ministry of Transport.
His post was in relation to the announcement of an intended sod-cutting ceremony for the construction of a permanent Hajj village located on the Spintex stretch of the airport lands.
The former legislator and coordinator for the Zongo Development Secretariat who shared “images” of ongoing construction activities at the site said the decision to construct the village for Hajj pilgrims was based on an appeal by the Ghana Hajj Board for a befitting Hajj Village for its operations.
“The Ministry of Transport and the Ghana Airport Company Limited therefore settled on a site opposite the Action Chapel on the Spintex Road stretch of the airport, and the contract for the construction was awarded to a company called MAWUMS in 2024 after a Public Procurement Authority approval,” he said.
He added: “The legacy of the Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo-Bawumia government is one that was seen as a sacred project based on its religious underpinnings, thereby avoiding any form of funfair, pomp and pageantry in the name of sod cutting.”
The President, John Dramani Mahama, accompanied by the National Chief Imam, Sheikh Usman Nuhu Sharubutu, is expected to cut sod today for the project.
The landmark project is aimed at enhancing the organisation and facilitation of the Hajj pilgrimage, providing modern facilities to accommodate pilgrims and streamlining travel arrangements.
“The event signifies the government’s commitment to improving the welfare of Ghanaian Muslims and strengthening infrastructure to support religious and cultural activities in the country,” the Pilgrim Affairs Office of Ghana said in a social media post.
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