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Two Hundred and sixty six Muslim pilgrims left the Kotoka International Airport(KIA) aboard an Egypt Air flight at about 2000hrs this evening for Mecca, Saudi Arabia, for the annual Islamic Hajj. They form the first batch of about 3000 Muslim pilgrims who would be participating in this year's Hajj from Ghana. The Vice President, John Dramani Mahama, who was at the airport to see off the pilgrims, wished them a safe trip and said it was the wish of government that they had a very smooth and successful pilgrimage. He advised the pilgrims to endeavour to carry at least 700 dollars each. The Vice President said this was a recommendation of the Hajj Committee, adding that considering the fact that the pilgrims would each spend at least three weeks in the holy city, they needed sufficient money on them during the period. Vice President Mahama expressed his gratitude to President John Evans Atta Mills for the immense support he had lent to this year's Hajj. He also acknowledged the support of the national Chief Imam, Sheikh Usmanu Nuhu Sharubutu, as well as that of the chairman of the Hajj Committee, the management of Egypt Air and a number of other stake-holders. Alhaji Inusa Abdulai Fuseini, Member of Parliament for Tamale Central, said many Muslims were of the belief that some form of assistance from the state would solve the problems that Muslim pilgrims had to go through every year. "We are very thankful to the government for its immense support towards this year's Hajj", he said. Also present at the airport were Sheikh Nuhu Sharubutu, National Chief Imam, Alhaji Alhassan Benneh, Chairman of the Hajj board, and other dignitaries. An earlier visit by the Ghana News Agency to the Hajj Village at the Elwak Sports Stadium revealed that for the first time in several years, Hajj pilgrims now lived in comfortable and well secured premises, as they awaited their turn to emplane to Mecca. Pilgrims embarking on the 2009 Hajj were provided with comfortable tents which were fitted with air conditioners and comfortable bedding, as well as hygienic washrooms. Also available were health posts, and neat eateries which were all completely lacking in previous years. Besides that, a strong military and police presence around the premises also provided security for the pilgrims. Arrangements had also been made to have all pilgrims go through all their travel formalities at the Hajj village. With the new arrangements, pilgrims do not have to wait at the village for not more than a day before emplaning. Airport officials told the GNA that they had not encountered any major problem adding, the procedures had all gone very smoothly. In the words of Ibrahim Iddris, a 45 year old pilgrim, "I have heard of terrible experiences of Hajj pilgrims in the past but I am not encountering any problem here. I came yesterday and expect to board my flight by 8.00pm today." Alhaji Abdul Fatah, Greater Accra Regional Secretary of the Tijaniyya Muslim Movement of Ghana, said the new arrangements were highly impressive. "Everyone is in fully air-conditioned room, no shortage of water, toilets are clean and just perfect. They can bathe at anytime, they feel very comfortable, passports ready, manifest ready," he said. Alhaji Fatah said: "we are grateful to President Mills and the Vice President for the enormous work they have done. They have set a record that can never be broken," he added. Alhaji Alhassan Benneh, Chairman of the Hajj Board, said this year's arrangement had been satisfactory. "We thank God that respect has finally been brought to the Muslim community. This has not been like during the past when people encountered numerous problems when they embarked upon the Hajj pilgrimage." All pilgrims attending this year's Hajj are expected to be airlifted to the Islam's holiest city of Mecca in batches of about 260 on a daily bases within the next week. The Hajj pilgrimage in the past years has been fraught with problems, with many pilgrims often having to return home even after paying huge sums of money to embark on the pilgrimage due to poor organization. Pilgrims have also had to sleep in the open and go for days without a bath, whilst being exposed to the activities of criminals because of the lack of any form of security. Typically, pilgrims would be stranded with practically no information on their travel arrangements; whether to travel or not to travel was a puzzle they had to contend with.