Ben Abdallah Banda, the chairman of the Ghana Hajj Board, has warned aspiring Ghanaian Muslims to be wary of con artists who promise to provide Hajj services in exchange for tourist visas to gullible pilgrims.
Additionally, the Chairman issued a warning that anyone with a tourist visa or a Hajj visa who did not make payment through the Hajj Board or its authorized agents and who intends to use Ghana’s facilities in Saudi Arabia during the Hajj should abandon their plans immediately because they risk being caught.
The head of the Ghana Hajj Board warned that some people intentionally or unintentionally try to perform the Hajj using tourist visas rather than the required Hajj Visa, adding that offenders may face legal action.
The Saudi Arabian authorities have stated that they will be extremely strict in applying the law.
“I want to sound this caution to my brothers and sisters, who may have paid some money to some fake agents who can only get them tourist visas not Hajj visas. You cannot perform the Hajj with a tourist visa and if you attempt to do that, you will be arrested and prosecuted and you may be jailed, deported and even suffer a ban from entering Saudi Arabia for years,” Ben Abdallah Banda warned.
