Press release
In its effort to ensure strict adherence to contractual agreement, the management team of FCT Muslims Pilgrims Welfare Board, (MPWB) led by the director, Abubakar Adamu Evuti feeding has inspected the facilities of the food vendors contracted to supply daily meals to the FCT pilgrims in Makkah.
The visit was aimed at strengthening, monitoring and supervision of the services towards protecting the interest of the FCT contingents in the Holy Land of kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Interacting with management of the contracting company, the Director of the Board, Abubakar Adamu Evuti expressed satisfaction with the quality of the services being provided, urged them to sustain the effort in providing a better feeding to the pilgrims through out their stay in Saudi Arabia inline with the contractual agreement.
Evuti used the opportunity to present few observations raised by the pilgrims regarding the tests and aroma of the food.
The Director emphasized the commitment of the Administration to continue to ensure that proper things are done to provide good and acceptable meals in line with the standard agreed upon.
According to him” Alhamdulillah, we came to see kitchen for ourselves where the food for the FCT pilgrims are been prepared and packaged. Our intentions of coming here to see things for ourselves, the food given to our pilgrims interms of quality and quantity is satisfiable to what was agreed upon with the cooks. Not only about the quality and quantity but also to ensure the menu which we have provided for them are strictly adhere to, because these are Nigerians who are in another country different from there own and want to eat the foods at least the one they know and one they’re familiar with. We provided the menu and that menu has been strictly adhere to”.
He added that, ” from the onset we have some little challenges, these challenges was not because these items are not available, they are available but the only challenge was on how to package them.
But our staff are also involved in packaging these foods for the pilgrims. We have a team that is coming here daily from the office of the Board to assist Caterers in packaging and putting these foods together”, he noted.
The Director insisted that the management team was there essentially to see things for themselves and ensure that everything is done according to the menu that was given to the caterers.
While assuring the Pilgrims FCT Pilgrims and Nigerians that the quantity and quality of foods that will be providing for the pilgrims will be of high standard, without compromse.
He therefore urged the pilgrims to notify the Board of any observation so as to take it up with the Caterers to ensure improvement.
Evuti who was elated with how the foods are been prepared and the hygiene nature of the Kitchen revealed that there’s a lot of contradiction form what they have seen on ground and the earlier insinuations about the services provided for the pilgrims.
Earlier, the Head of Pilgrims Welfare Services Division of the Board, Hajiya Hadiza Mohammed who is in charge of feeding service in Mecca expressed commitment to adhere to the specification in line with menu given to the Caterers.
“:We normally come to this kitchen regularly especially, the days they will cook our local foods, we make sure that we report here as early as possible to guide them some time we even partake in the preparation and packaging of the food to ensure quality especially the days earrmarked for Tuwo Shinkafa or Semovita which is a new thing to them”, Hajiya Mohammed explained..
She read the Menu to includes the following, ” in our Menu, we have tuwo semo once in a week, tuwo shinkafa with miya taushe once in a week, we have jellof rice, fried rice Indian rice, then we also have rice and beans. Before we have tuwo twice in a week but now we have changed it to ones a week that is rice and beans with soup, then we have white rice with spices with either meat, fish or beef and fresh fruits “.
Earlier, the Chief Caterers, Mr Mustapha Musa thereafter commended Director of the FCT Muslims Pilgrims Welfare Board and his team for intensifying supervision to ensure quality service is delivered.
A total of 2958 FCT contingent for this year’s Hajj are now in Makkah for the exercise.
The FCT Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board airlifted the contingent in 10 flights which commenced on 15th of May this year.
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