Over 200 Intending Pilgrims Protest In Ilorin Over Faulty Aircraft

About 270 intending pilgrims from Kwara State disrupted activities at Ilorin International Airport on Friday afternoon, protesting delay in their flight to Saudi Arabia.

Vanguard Correspondent reliably gathered at the Airport that the protest commenced around 4:00 pm, with the pilgrims blocking the popular Ilorin/Ogbomoso/Ibadan Expressway.

The protesters reportedly obstructed the movement of vehicles along the expressway, preventing both entry and exit from the airport premises.

This blockade was said to have led to a standstill, affecting airport operations and caused inconvenience to other road users .

One of the protesters Sadudeen Alapo who spoke to journalists alleged that they had been in the Ilorin Hajj camp for the past 5 days without provision of an aircraft before an aircraft was brought yesterday’s night.

He expressed surprise that despite the presence of the aircraft that they were yet to be airlifted.

Meanwhile, the Kwara state Amirul Hajj Senator Yahaya Oloriegbe in his reaction to the development explained that the aircraft brought to airlift the intending pilgrims developed faults, saying that the board has called for another airline that will airlift the pilgrims later today.

Oloriegbe however urged the pilgrims to remain calm as he assured them that everyone will be airlifted by this night.