Nigeria Air: flying without wings as takeoff is postponed indefinitely
It is a most telling story. We speak of course of the story of the quest to establish a national airline that will fly Nigeria’s colours. Early in his campaign and inaugural days in 2015, President Muhammadu Buhari had deemed it pertinent for Nigeria to once again establish a sovereign presence in the sky and in airports across cities of the world.
The president even suggested that some of the nearly one dozen aircraft in the Presidential Fleet may be converted to commercial jets for such purpose. His idea was roundly applauded. How could so many national airlines ply the Nigerian route and cart away so much foreign exchange straight from Nigeria’s till? How would Nigeria’s aviation industry grow if her pilots and the entire repertoire of her aeronautic corps are not guaranteed robust environment to practice?
The ruling party’s manifesto has plans for a national carrier that may emerge from merging existing troubled local airlines. President Buhari also called for action to that effect after he was briefed by the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Aviation in August 2015. He indeed urged the ministry to expedite action towards the refloating of the national carrier.
In 2017, advisers drawn from six firms were appointed to help set up Nigeria’s national airline and develop aviation infrastructure with a view to making Nigeria a hub for West Africa. The firms which included the German carrier Lufthansa would advise on setting up an airline, an aviation leasing company, a maintenance hangar and the formulation of concessions to run the country’s airports.
The sum of N1.52 billion ($4.99m) funding was approved for this leg of the project.
Not much was heard about the national carrier project nor the work of these advisors until last July when the Minister of State for Aviation, Hadi Sirika, jolted Nigerians and the aviation world by unveiling what he termed the new national carrier to be known as Nigeria Air.
It was in faraway Farnborough, England, at an international air show. Sirika had stepped up to the stage, unfurled a poster with the bold inscription, Nigeria Air with a payoff line below: Bringing Nigeria closer to the world. A green and white livery flutters above the lettering.
Sirika told the aviation world that near everything was ready for the takeoff of Nigeria Air this December. He said all the right things: it would be private-sector driven; government would own only about five per cent of equity; investors were ready and waiting; aircraft manufacturers were ready to deliver and over 80 routes were already secured.
He said so much more but Nigerians, especially aviation experts, were full of skepticism. The entire idea seemed strange and implausible, if not outright impossible. Between July and December was barely five months. It was certainly not enough time to secure investors’ commitment, acquire and take delivery of aircraft, set up offices (local and foreign), recruit personnel, train and acculturise them; among numerous other pre-launch tasks.
Minister Sirika stood his ground, insisting that December takeoff was done deal. However, mid-September, it naturally fell on Sirika to mop up his grime. After a Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting, Sirika it was who addressed the media: “I regret to announce that the Federal Executive Council has taken the tough decision to suspend the National Carrier Project in the interim.
“All commitments due will be honoured. We thank the public…”
Nigerians were aghast. For many critics of the Buhari administration, the national carrier story represents the story of the administration. They insist that the last three years has been a period of flip-flops during which hardly any original project has been initiated and seen to a logical conclusion.
We are not only troubled that this government has been unable to see through a not-too-complex project which many lesser countries have accomplished in the last two years; we are worried by the numbing lackadaisical attitude and a total lack of sense of duty exhibited by the minister and all concerned in this project.
We are also unnerved by a lack of transparency and a naked show of impunity by not affording the citizenry full disclosures concerning this national project in which taxpayers funds have seemingly been disbursed.
Above all, we are of the opinion that Nigerians deserve to know exactly what went down with this project; how much funds have been committed and who is responsible for what is obviously a fiasco. And we strongly suggest that it would not be out of order to levy strong sanctions on all the officials who bungled this project. In fact, it is the right and proper thing to do.