Nigeria Air launch a fraud, says House of Representatives

.Branded aircraft chartered from Ethiopian Airline -- MD .As Nigeria Air announces timeline for commencement of commercial flights

By Adekunle Adesuji and Jonas Ezieke, Abuja

The House of Representatives Tuesday through its Standing Committee on Aviation has recommended prosecution and sanction for individuals, groups or Organizations found culpable in what it termed a fraud – “Nigeria Air Take-off”

The Committee after careful evaluation of issues on the National Carrier, Nigeria Air, expressed dissatisfaction with the actions of the erstwhile Minister of Aviation Hadi Sirka in going to flag off the Operations of Nigeria Air, despite a subsisting court injunction against such, and without any provision for sustaining the Operations of the airline.

The House similarly recommended to the present administration to urgently constitute a high powered Presidential Committee to undertake a holistic review of the whole Nigeria Air project and chart a new course forward.

The Committee at the end of an emergency meeting with stakeholders on the project including the Acting Minister of Aviation Dr. Emmanuel Meribole, heads of agencies under the Ministry, airline operators, investors in Air Nigeria and Regulatory Agencies in the industry were irked by by the Rome played by Ethiopian Airline in the whole process, noting that it does not speak well if the excellent relationship existing between the two countries.

Ethiopian Airlines that is supposed to own 49% in the partnership is alleged to be working in consonance with their Nigerian partners to put in place measures capable of crippling the activities of domestic airline operators by enjoying un precendented years of tax rebate and not coming up with commensurate investment fund to their share holding.

The Committee Chairman Hom.Nnolim Nanji also advised the Ministry with the NCAA to designate some indigenous airlines as Flag Carriers to take advantage of Bi-lateral Air Services Agreement BASSA, entered into by Nigeria, pending when a viable National Carrier comes on board

The Committee felt that with the total amount of $250,000,000 needed by the Nigerian government and investors can be raised locally without necessarily subjecting itself to the ridicule Nigeria was exposed to in the recent National Carrier episode.

Despite efforts by the Ministry to defend its positions in the whole deal, the Committee established that the plane brought in from Ethopia for the unveiling ceremony was infact a chartered and rebranded plane from the Ethopian Airline Fleet which after the photo session at the ‘arranged’ ceremony returned to base the following morning to continue its routine flight operations.

However, The Interim Managing Director of Nigeria Air , Captain Dayo Olumide told the Senate Committee on Aviation on Tuesday, that the recently unveiled Nigeria Air launched by former President Muhamadu Buhari , was a chattered aircraft from Ethiopia hired for five days to show case the logo to Nigerians and their shareholders .

Captain Dayo revealed to the Lawmakers that for the country to operate an aircraft , the aircraft must be Nigeria registered with all necessary procedures complied with.

He added that, the particular aircraft that was unveiled was not registered and came into Nigeria with a few days clearance from Ethiopia and was returned after use.

He further stated that Nigeria only has airport license which is one of two licenses required for operating an airline and does not permit one to carry out commercial services operations .

He said : ” “I will like to address your question first before I go on. The aircraft that came in and left was a legitimate charter flight.

“Anyone of us here if we have a destination wedding in Senegal, we can charter an aircraft. You don’t need to have a licence to do that, you just charter an aircraft, an aircraft you paid for it, it will be brought here, take your passengers and off you go.

“And that is what we did. But in this case, it was to unveil, ever since 2018, all you have ever seen about Nigeria Aircraft were pictures, drawings not the real aircraft, and we thought it was time to show what the logo will look like on a real aircraft and also to let our shareholders see the effort we have made so far. Our institutional investors are not in aviation, but they are putting their money for 10 or 15 years. So they need to see what the actual aircraft with logo will look like. Then the social media dimension came into it.

“It is Ethiopian registered one . Why is it Ethiopian registered. To operate aircraft in Nigeria, they must be Nigerian registered; that aircraft was not 5th November registered because it was a chartered flight and it came in with just a few days clearance and off it went.

“For us to get that licence which is my mandate, we must among other things have three aircraft before the NCA will give us a licence and those three aircraft must be Nigerian registered aircraft.

“There are five steps that one goes through to have a licence. We have gone from the first one to the second one but the problem is that when you change what we call post holders, post holders is a technical term for director of maintenance, Chief pilot, when you change them and replace them completely, you have to go back to phase one to interview them to be compliant to the authority. But haven gone back to phase one doesn’t mean you have done anything wrong. That is a correct and normal process.

“So when this aircraft came on a chartered flight, everybody said we have launched Nigeria Air , I want to clarify that we have not launched Nigeria Air”.

In their remarks , the Chairman of the Committee, Senator Biodun Olujimi and Smart Adeyemi , said it was unfortunate for the Nigeria Air project to be shrouded in suspicion and secrecy.

The committee also frowned at other at other decisions taken by handlers in the aviation sector that does not add value to the sector and the image of the country.

Members of the committee were shocked when NAMA disclosed that the aircraft bearing Nigerian colours was on a chartered flight to Nigeria.

Other stakeholders who confirmed the disclosure noted that a chartered flight could be painted in any colour and with any inscriptions.

Nigeria Air launch a fraud says House of Representatives