Naif, who said that planning is a must for every event, explained that every aspect of hosting Haj has to be considered and planned. “When countries organize sports events, they start preparing years in advance in order to accommodate 300,000 people or less. But Haj is a much bigger gathering and managing it is a greater responsibility.”
Saudi Arabia hosts more than 2.5 million Haj pilgrims and about five million Umrah pilgrims every year.
Naif said his ministry deploys about 60,000 officers in Makkah, Mina, Arafat and Muzdalifa to ensure the security and safety of Haj pilgrims. The officers are instructed to deal with pilgrims politely and provide necessary help. “They will be held accountable for any misbehavior, and we’ll punish those who are negligent in their duties.”
He said Saudi Arabia treats all pilgrims equally, while expressing the government’s readiness to change the existing Haj rules and regulations if needed, in order to extend better services to the guests of God.
Naif, who is also chairman of the Supreme Haj Committee, made this comment while receiving Haj Minister Fouad Al-Farsy and heads of Tawafa organizations and other Haj agencies.
“The last Haj season was successful despite a substantial increase in the number of pilgrims,” the minister said, adding, Saudi Arabia is ready to mobilize all its resources to serve them.
He called for greater efforts to resolve any problems faced by pilgrims. “We have to be very clear in tackling problems,” he told top Haj executives. Prince Naif reminded the officials of their responsibility in dealing with Haj pilgrims. “This is a responsibility vested on this government and people and we don’t see persons better than you to take up this important task,” he said, adding that the government stands by them in shouldering this responsibility.
Naif instructed all ministers involved in the Haj operation to meet immediately after the Haj season to review the shortcomings. They were also instructed to meet before Haj to make necessary preparations to welcome the pilgrims. He also sought proposals and suggestions on ways to further improve Haj services.
“We have a Haj operation room comprising representatives of all related ministries who work as one team to find immediate solutions to any problem that occurs during the Haj season.”
