Nigerians presently in Saudi Arabia for the 2024 Hajj have bemoaned the quality and quantity of the meals they are being served despite paying over Eight million naira (N8 Million) for the function.
This was revealed by a Facebook user, Babagana Digima, who posted a small portion of pap and three bean cake (Akara) claiming it was breakfast served to the pilgrims on Tuesday. This is coming after some catering service companies in Madinah contracted to prepare and serve Nigerian dishes to pilgrims have expressed readiness to provide sumptuous meals throughout their stay for the holy period.
The head of Hiegene and Sanitation, Al Andalus Catering Services, Muhammad Bashar said, “We are serving Nigerians and Indonesian pilgrims each with different sections of food and kitchens. For the Nigerian kitchen, we have nine Chefs who are Nigerians and familiar with popular dishes from different parts of the country.
“We are concerned about the health of pilgrims by serving good and healthy foods and at appropriate times too. We have been doing it for 10 years now without hitch, we have 75 staff including 9 chefs who are experts in popular Nigerian ditches,” Bashar said.
Also, the General Manager, of Africana Home Restaurant & Grills, Nasrudeen Bakare, who hails from Ogun State, took journalists around the various sections of the kitchen facilities of the company, assuring pilgrims of delivering varieties of sumptuous meals to the pilgrims in Madinah.
“This company is substantially owned by Nigerians and will be serving pilgrims from the South-west during their stay in Madinah.
In the same vein, Zowar Mukhtara established by Sami Marzuoq in partnership with Nigerian investors will be serving no fewer than 8000 pilgrims in Madinah.
Bakare stated that despite restrictions on bringing in local foodstuffs ànd other food materials to the kingdom, the company will still provide the famous ewedu soup along with semo and others. At Zowa Mukhtara, journalists were also taken around their kitchen facilities.