The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Oduah

  • Time up, Oduah(2)

    Does anyone find it amusing, surprising or shocking that the delectable Minister of Aviation is pressing all buttons in a desperate bid to keep her job? Why would anyone easily give up a job that could allow her access to N255 million to squander on any item that catches her fancy? Why would she be encouraged to drop anchor when the system has a way of recognizing, accommodating, promoting and rewarding such people? Why would she contemplate bowing out when the boss sees nothing wrong in the action?

    Indeed, is corruption considered a crime against the state and humanity? Is it seen as iniquity before the Almighty to whom we shall all give account one day? Men in the country have long gone pass such consideration. Now, women, too, are not content with taking over the trouser but want to do all that men do. If anyone doubts this and still considers women more decent in handling public affairs and running organisations and institutions than men, such a person is invited to check up on the Cecilia Ibru case.

    The woman has the record, to the best of my knowledge, in converting collective assets to private use. At the last count, before the EFCC officials got tired of probing, almost N200 billion belonging to Oceanic Bank had been traced to her. All of a sudden, she could not make a distinction between the assets of the bank, depositors’ fund and the husband’s resources. Like the men earlier discovered to be enemies of humanity, she had tried to disguise by buying a place near the altar in a number of churches. If she could sponsor churches with ill-gotten wealth and secure fervent prayers from men of God, she thought she would find peace and the anti-graft agencies could be charmed. She failed.

    I have read some of the most repugnant analyses and opinions that I have had the misfortune of reading in the four decades that I have been poring through newspapers. And, like all things Nigerian, there is an ethnic coloration to the defence. Sometimes, one could hardly draw a line between hired guns and those motivated by base ethnic concerns. Did the Igbo send her to pervert the system? Was she going to donate what she allegedly got from inflating the price of the BMW armoured cars to Igbo organisations?

    It is ludicrous to suggest that the vehicle had long been ordered. Anyone who understands how appropriation works would ask, in what year’s budget is it captured? The House of Representatives has said it was chalked out of this year’s Appropriation Act. The last time I checked, despite having made so much money from the rotten Nigerian system ever before she was appointed Jonathan’s minister, there was no Foundation traceable to her. Perhaps, she had shown generosity to a few members of her family. No more.

    There is no basis to suggest that those after her scalp are Yoruba who could not stand her guts. What gut? The Akinkuotu who is believed to have perfected the plan and delivered on the deal as NCAA boss is no less guilty. He is already answering to his part in the crime. He is being grilled all round without anyone asking whether he is from Lagos or Ondo State. He ought to have known that once the matter got to the court of public opinion, he was bound to fall with the master or madam.

    Hanging it all on the system really makes no sense to me. That is too nebulous. Agreed, the system could do with some reform. Agreed, there are more sordid things in the public service. But, why should anyone suggest that we look on and probably indulge the Oduahs when caught in the act? When General Obasanjo was installed President by the votes of Nigerians from other parts of the country, the Yoruba remained his virulent critics. When he chose to give his kinsman, Makanjuola, a slap on the wrist for fiddling with public fund, he failed to secure the acquiescence of the Yoruba, especially those in the media. So, why should Stella Oduah’s be different?

    We cannot continue to bemoan our collective fate. We must begin to take action, speak with one voice abide by common standards. Oduah must go. She desecrated a high office of the land. She appears to have colluded with men under her authority to fritter away scarce national resources. She made inappropriate decisions. She, thereby, made life more unbearable for already traumatised Nigerians. She is one of those who have been caught doing so and should be shown the way out.

    Should she, as some writers have suggested, just apologise and be allowed to continue in office? I don’t think that will do. She would be doing herself and the national psyche some good if she could still gather some dignity around her, simply pack her personal effects from office and bow out now.

  • Oduah’s home community rises in defence

    The embattled Minister of Aviation, Princess Stella Oduah, yesterday got some support from her home over her actions in developing aviation sector. They gave her a vote of confidence.

    In a communiqué signed by Comrade Peter Okala and Evangelist Jerry Elezua as chairman and secretary of Ogbaru Stakeholders Forum respectively, the group said “This is the time for our people to start appreciating and encouraging her patriotic citizens so as to encourage others to follow good steps in their respective national assignments, purchase of operational vehicles and even armored cars comply with the world’s international acceptable standard which our Princess has vowed to take our aviation industry to.”

    They added: ”Oduah has removed the shame of our people which the rot in facilities in our airport presents and deserve commendation instead of condemnation. We advise those former corrupt ministers, contractors and other big bosses to accept defeat and support the unprecedented development and upgrading that come from the present minister as monies budgeted for projects should be channeled to such projects instead of diverting it to personal account which was the case before now,” they said.

     

  • N255m bulletproof cars deal illegal, panel told

    N255m bulletproof cars deal illegal, panel told

    The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and the Minister of Aviation, Ms. Stella Oduah, breached procurement laws in the purchase of two BMW armoured cars, the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) said yesterday.

    At the commencement of the House of Representatives’ public hearing on the purchase of the cars, the agency could not provide authorisation for the deal.

    The minister was not at the hearing as she was away in Israel on an official assignment.

    The revelations were made by BPP in its response to the committees’s request for correspondences between it and NCAA on the procurement of the two vehicles.

    NCAA was also said to have failed to get the consent of the BPP for the transaction in contravention of procurement laws.

    Mr. Ayo Aderibigbe, a Deputy Director in the BPP, said there were no correspondences between the two. “We have nothing to forward to the House on this matter; we also have nothing on details and dates on the procurement process, including a certificate of no objection, on the purchase of the vehicles,

    “We also have no other relevant documents that could facilitate the process of the Committees’s investigation in the purchase of the two vehicles,” Aderibigbe said.

    The BPP spoke on the procurement of such goods, saying approval must be by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) once it is over N100m and not the Ministerial Tenders Board.

    The procurement that was approved by the Minister was also in breach of the law as the cost of the two vehicles at N255,159m can only be approved by the FEC.

    The agency was also shown to display total disregard for the law with the purchase of the two armoured cars that were removed from the agency’s budget during its 2013 budget defence/presentation at the House of Representatives.

    In addition, the aviation agency also breached the 2013 Appropriation Act by exceeding the budgeted amount of N240m to purchase operational vehicles for N403m.

    Similarly, while 25 operational vehicles were appropriated for, the agency went ahead to procure 54 vehicles.

    The purchase of 54 vehicles instead of the approved 25 cost the agency N643m that would eventually amount to N1,018b, with the instalmental repayment, according to the term of agreement with the bank.

    The Director General of NCAA, Captain Fola Akinkuotu, who was unable to provide information on the Oduah car transaction, said the deal was completed before his assumption of office on August 14.

    He also said though he received handing over notes from all the directors of the agency, none mentioned the procurement of the two vehicles and when he asked questions about it, no one offered any explanation.

    The then Acting Director General, Mr. Joyce Nkemakolom, during whose tenure between April 14 and August 14 the procurement was made, angered the committee by evading questions.

    He could not defend how one unit of the armoured car put at N70m in the memorandum sent to the minister was purchased for N127m.

    When he was asked if the procurement of the vehicles was correct and in consonance with the Appropriation Act, he said it was a lease finance facility and not an outright purchase.

    Nkemakolom failed to cite the relevant sections of the Act to back his claim, but the BPP said the procurement involved government funds.

    He also saw no wrong in overshooting the budget, saying the vehicles were property of First Bank that financed the deal.

    “As we speak, the vehicles are still under the control of the financing bank and we were given approval for N240m for the procurement in the 2013 budget and with this procedure, we can never, never flap that ceiling,” Nkemakolom said.

    The committee said Nkemakolom was lying on oath with documents that showed how NCAA exceeded the number of vehicles approved in the budget with his signature on the document.

    He was also shown another document that confirmed the delivery of the vehicles to the Ikeja office of the agency on August 13, 2013.

    The Chairman of the Committee, Nkiruka Onyejeocha, said her Committee’s only interest was Nigeria and that in line with the mandate of the House aimed to find out whether the purchase was correct.

    She also said the Committee wanted to find out if the purchase was authorised by any Appropriation law, whether NCAA had been complying with the Fiscal Responsibility Act (FRA) on internally generated revenue and whether any minister is entitled to such vehicles under the law.

    The committee adjourned its sitting to Tuesday, asking Oduah, the Chairman of Coscharis Motors and the Managing Director of First Bank to appear before it.

    The Committee requested NCAA to come along with details of banks where it has accounts as well as six months statement from the banks.

    APC: Presidential panel diversionary

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) has warned against any attempt by the “unimaginative spin doctors” of the Aviation Ministry to use politics as a cover for the egregious corruption scandal surrounding the illegal purchase of two armoured cars for the Minister of Aviation.
    In a statement in Lagos yesterday by its Interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said it was “most unconscionable for anyone to blame the supposed opposition to President Jonathan’s re-election in 2015 as the reason for the widespread outcry against the monumental corruption and abuse of office engendered by the scandal.”
    It said that the opposition, in particular, “should not be blamed for the justifiable indignation of most Nigerians to the scandal, as Yakubu Dati, who goes by the nebulous title of ‘coordinating spokesperson for the aviation ministry”.
    “Don’t blame him. After all, there is a coordinating minister of the economy, a title unknown to the Constitution) tried to do in his winding postulation on the scandal.
    ‘’What Dati and his co-spin doctors tried to do is to play on President Jonathan’s insecurity as far as 2015 elections are concerned. This is very insulting not only to Nigerians but also to President Jonathan himself, and it will not sell. After all, attempts to blame the opposition for the lingering ASUU strike has also failed. In any case, what is the business of a public servant, who is supposed to be apolitical, about whether a President is re-elected or not?
    ‘’We in the APC have not joined the fray over the Oduahgate scandal since it broke out because we thought this was a straightforward case of corruption and abuse of office that should be summarily dealt with. But President Jonathan has again failed to live up to expectation, thus allowing all manners of clowns to seek to pull the wool over the eyes of Nigerians in the name of defending the indefensible,’’ the APC said.
    The party wondered why President Jonathan will engage in a diversionary and exculpatory strategy of setting up a panel to investigate the scandal, when there are statutory bodies that are supposed to do so.
    ‘’There is precedence on how to handle such a matter. In case President Jonathan has forgotten, his then boss, President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, sacked Adenike Grange and Gabriel Aduku, Minister of Health and Minister of State for Health respectively, for spending part of the ministry’s unspent budget. The Permanent Secretary and other top officials of the ministry were also suspended when the issue broke out. No panel was set up before this action was taken.
    ‘’While many may argue that President Jonathan is only following ‘due process’ in dealing with the issue, we counter that he is only seeking to buy time while hoping that the issue will die down. The composition of the panel set up by the President itself supports our stand. It is doubtful if any of the members will act against what they perceive to be the ‘interest’ of the President on the issue,’’ it said.
    The APC also condemned the arrest of Mr. Dino Melaye and other protesters against the Oduahgate scandal in Abuja, saying the police, by their action, have signalled that they will protect corrupt public officials.
    The party said the reasons given by the police, obstruction of traffic and disturbance of public peace, were apparently cooked up to justify their shameful act.
    ‘’The Nigeria Police must learn to operate in accordance with the best practices around the world. Elsewhere, the police will offer protection to peaceful protests, the type that Mr. Melaye led in Abuja, and ensure that their protests are not hijacked by hoodlums, like the hired pro-Oduah protesters who reportedly attacked those protesting against corruption and abuse of office.
    ‘’This is not what is expected of a police force that is maintained with taxpayers fund, and all those involved in harassing and arresting the anti-corruption protesters must bow their heads in shame,’’ APC said.

  • Not ‘an act of God’

    Not ‘an act of God’

    • Stella Oduah should be fired over purchase of bullet-proof vehicles for her security

    Stella Oduah, Nigeria’s aviation minister, is in the news again, barely two weeks after her ministry was under severe criticism over the crash of Associated Airlines plane on October 3 in Lagos. An online news medium, SaharaReporters, had reported that the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) bought two BMW bullet-proof cars worth $1.6m (N255m) for the minister. In spite of the fact that the medium gave what seemed vivid details of the transaction, including the bank involved, the motor firm that brought in the vehicles, their chassis numbers as well as the names of the NCAA officials who took delivery of them and even the date of delivery, many Nigerians had patiently waited for the NCAA or even the aviation ministry to debunk the report as a figment of the reporter’s imagination. The market value of each of the vehicles is N36m.

    But lo and behold, rather than deny the story, the Ministry of Aviation confirmed that it was true and tried to justify the procurement of the vehicles. The special assistant (media) to the minister, Mr. Joe Obi who confirmed the story said the vehicles were purchased to protect the minister from some external threats that arose because of her activities that have destabilised some entrenched interests in the sector. “When she came on board as the minister, she inherited a lot of baggage in terms of the concession and lease agreements in the sector, which were clearly not in the interest of the government and people of Nigeria. And so, she took bold steps and some of these agreements were reviewed and some were terminated, and these moves disturbed some entrenched interests in the sector, and within this period, she began to receive some imminent threats to her life; therefore, the need for the vehicles,” he said.

    Obi concluded that the vehicles were not personal property and would not be taken away by the minister after her tenure. He was however silent on the outrageous cost of the vehicles.

    This is ludicrous. Public officials deserve to be protected, but this should not be at prohibitive cost to the taxpayer. Indeed, all Nigerians have security challenges and the best way is to tackle the challenges holistically rather than selectively as has been done in the Ms. Oduah instance. We know she is not alone in this; there are many other public officials who have done worst things with public funds under one pretext or the other. But this is one other expenditure by a public agency that calls to question the process under which items are bought by the agencies. But for the expose by SaharaReporters, Nigerians would not have known about the purchase of the vehicles more than two months after they were delivered.

    More important is the fact that our aviation sector has remained troubled over the years. Under the minister’s watch alone, at least two major air crashes had occurred; one on June3, 2012 in Lagos involving Dana Air plane in which 163 people died; and the Associated Airlines crash of October 3, 2013, also in Lagos, which claimed 15 lives. At least, two other air mishaps were recorded this month alone.

    It’s high time the aviation minister was removed to halt the worrisome trend in the aviation sector. The simple inference from the mishaps and near mishaps in this troubled sector is that we still have a lot to do to make our airspace safe; yet priorities are not right. Although NCAA’s Director-General, Capt. Fola Akinkuotu, said the authority is not cash-strapped; a better way to demonstrate its buoyancy is by doing the needful to improve the facilities in our airports instead of splashing a whopping N255m on bullet-proof vehicles that should not cost more than N72m for a single individual.

    Equally disturbing is Akinkuotu’s statement to the effect that he is more interested in how the transaction leaked. This, however, is inconsequential as far as we are concerned. We are more pertubed by the outrageous cost that he has tried unsuccessfully to justify. The transaction is of public interest and the authority ought to have made it public a long time ago.

    Above all, no life is more precious than the other. If Ms Oduah sees accidents as” an act of God” as she claimed after the October 3 crash, why is she now bothered about her personal security? Is that too long for the hands of God to deliver?

     

  • Why we bought N225m bulletproof cars —NCAA boss

    Why we bought N225m bulletproof cars —NCAA boss

    The controversy trailing the procurement of N255 million worth of BMW armoured cars by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) continued yesterday with claims by the NCAA that the vehicles were purchased for operational purposes. The Director General of NCAA, Dr. Fola Akinkuotu, spoke on the purchase of the vehicles at a press conference in Abuja. Akinkuotu, who is at the centre of the controversy, said that apart from the vehicles being bought for operational purposes, provision was made for the purchase of the cars in the 2013 budget. The NCAA boss also admitted that the controversial vehicles were purchased at the rate of N255, 155, 000. He said that contrary to the insinuations in some quarters, the cars had customs fixed condition cost on them. The NCAA DG noted that the press conference became necessary in the light of the media reports about the procurement of two BMW 760 LI amoured steel cars for the NCAA. Akinkuotu said: “The cars are operational vehicles used in the various operations of the NCAA transporting the Minister and aviation related foreign dignitaries as part of its operations. “In the light on the media reports circumstances surrounding the procurement of two (2) BMW 760 LI amoured steel cars for the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA). “First, I will state that aviation is a global industry. The NCAA, a regulatory agency, very often plays host to international civil aviation bodies like ICAO, IATA, US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Africa Airline Association (AFA), African Civil Aviation Commission (AFCAC), The Banjul Accord Group (BAG), Civil Air Navigation Service Organisations (CANSO), Airport Council International (ACI), among several others. “It is internationally customary to convey our Minister and these foreign dignitaries in a security vehicle whenever they are in Nigeria. It must be noted that during such visitation, the security of the members of the delegations is the sole responsibility of the host country. “The vehicles are therefore in the pool of the NCAA for these special assignments and are available at the NCAA office and can be shown to you.” Akinkuotu said it was not the first time the agency would procure such high-security vehicles for the aforementioned purposes, adding that all the necessary procurement processes were followed. “The NCAA,” he said, “remains focused on enforcing standards and promoting safety in line with ICAO and Nigerian Civil Aviation Regulations (NCARS) and continues to perform its critical functions and the appropriate resources required for discharging these functions exist within and under the control of NCAA. “We are however shocked to note that online media platforms (paparazzi) are now the sources of information for some mainstream media. We assure that the NCAA is available and will continue to be available to give clarification and further information whenever required.” Wondering how the information about the acquisition leaked to the public, he said:: “I don’t know the source of the leak (sic). I issued a circular to all the staff, GM, Directors and Legal, and I will just read just a little bit. “Without prejudice to the nature and content of the document and the purpose of their existence, leakage and ultimate publication is a matter of great concern to the authority. “By the nature of our work and statutory provision, certain level of documents, processes and integrity are required for our successful day to day operation. For instance, the Civil Aviation Act made specific provisions with respect to our obligations for our confidentiality and restricted access to certain information that we procure in the conduct of our statutory functions. “I am not saying this particular information cannot be put in public premises, but how it is obtained. If somebody breaks into somebody’s office, made copies of official documents, is the breaking act not criminal? “So, we are in the process of trying to find the source of this leak and I am very concerned about it because this information may look trivial but there are other information we have that are confidential.” On the high cost of the cars, he said: “There are three factors that might decide. I am not speaking on behalf of the persons who put up the paper or the persons who cost it or the persons who sold it. But first of all, each car you buy has a custom features aspect to it. “Were they budgeted for? Yes. I don’t know the cost of the President’s car and I can’t relate it to this.” The NCAA DG added that it is only Coscharis Motors that can sell the brand of cars in the country.

  • Princess Oduah and the ‘bar room drunks’

    Princess Oduah and the ‘bar room drunks’

    Hardball knows that trick too well, it’s an old trick deployed by wayward Nigerian husbands. Here it goes: Mr. Husband has been home-weary and recently he hangs out more with the ‘boys’, he stays out late, perhaps having found new pleasures in new ‘pastimes’. Of course madam won’t be making jokes about hussy’s new ways. In the manner of every reasonable woman, she would fight to reclaim her man. She would start by gentle pleas and complaints about late nights and hussy’s odious breath. If the irritation persists, she would rant, rave and even attempt physical enforcement of her rights. But Mr. Man who would have strayed very deep into the ‘forest’ of perdition would simply devise an ingenious defence mechanism. He would start by calling madam ‘too possessive’ ‘nagging wife’ or ‘night watch’. If this does not ‘wash’ with madam, he would raise his game by deploying attack as the best form of defence. As he lumbers home late one of those nights, he would have rehearsed his lines and a mere ‘welcome’ from madam would elicit an explosion from hussy, like: “Welcome what, madam sentry? Next, you would issue me a query on my whereabouts, then you would lecture me and nag and on and on… please I can do without any ‘welcoming’ when I return, just allow me some space. I beg you in the name of everything you cherish,” he would feign uncontrollable anger.

    This long-winded introduction concerns our dear Aviation Minister Princess Stella Oduah. Last Monday, she played the wayward husband card when she chose to oblige us earthlings the reason why Dana Airlines had to be grounded. Recall that last Thursday, October 4, Nigeria suffered yet another air blight with the fall of an Associated Airlines craft in Lagos perishing about 21 passengers and crew. Another near mishap followed a day after and in quick succession, by Monday, October 7, Dana Air was unceremoniously shut down, leaving both management and customers in disarray.

    But when Nigerians wondered why the sector is in such a spin, the minister was so riled she railed at them: “…When you hear bar comments from drunks and addicts… making comments that have zero bearing on reality, it is very annoying. What I will advise the public really is to recognise the fact that aviation is a very professional area…” She also said such things as accidents being inevitable and an act of God. In her fish wife umbrage she uttered so much illogic but let us just point out a few.

    Hardball always knew Oduah to be a trader (ok, we concede that petroleum trading is a notch above frozen fish), but when did she become an aeronautic engineer or the more recondite avionics specialist? To think that just two moons ago she was made Aviation minister and we were afraid for her because she knew not much difference between an airport and a tank farm. Today, she calls the rest of us ‘drunks and addicts’ just because we ask questions about basic issues of aviation safety and regulation. But we insist that if the last mishap had not occurred, Dana would still be flying today. It stands to reason therefore to infer that if the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), under her watch had been upfront with its duties, may be that crash would not have happened.

    Recall that about one year ago, when a Dana craft crashed, killing over 150, Oduah hurriedly returned the airline to the air as if the life of the nation was at stake. This was in spite of protestations from Nigerians and families of accident victims still largely left in the lurch as to their insurance claims.

    We will overlook Madam Oduah’s uncouth language and arrogance and just note that she is sounding like a wayward Nigerian husband.

  • ‘Oduah took my advice out of context’

    ‘Oduah took my advice out of context’

    A former Aviation Minister, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode, yesterday criticised Aviation Minister, Ms Stella Oduah, for allegedly taking his advice to her out of context.

    In a statement in Lagos, Fani-Kayode said: “Stella Oduah made some comments about me today (yesterday), which were uncalled for, malicious and petty. She reportedly said I should ‘bury my head in shame’, suggesting that I was ‘speaking out of context’ in my essay, where I called for her resignation and that I spoke under some ‘influence of something or other’. “My advice and counsel to her is to stop being petty. She is meant to talk like someone who befits her office and not like a market woman… I do not like joining issues with women publicly; this is why I was very gentle with her in my essay, though I made my point. But this woman is endangering the lives of our people with her insensitivity, and we cannot just keep quiet.

    “This is a woman under whose watch as Aviation minister almost 200 people have been killed and, instead of focusing on how to save lives, her obsession has become smearing and abusing Femi Fani-Kayode. This is a woman who only yesterday told Nigerians that ‘accidents are inevitable’ and that they were ‘acts of God’. This is a woman who thinks more about how her headscarf …than she does about protecting Nigerian air travellers.

    “If anyone should bury her head in shame it is her; not me. After about 200 of our fellow citizens have been killed under her watch, instead of abusing her critics and those of us who have expressed our concerns and offered our advice, she should be seeking repentance from God and tendering her resignation. She should be attempting to encourage Nigerians and assuage their fears rather than indulging in cheap side shots and a futile press war.

    “Instead of comforting the families of those who died, she is abusing me. What a shame!

    “Under her tenure, we have beautiful terminals but deadly and blood-soaked skies. Our skies have become death traps because she really does not care.”

    My advice to her is to get serious and focus on doing her job, rather than attempting to smear me with lies and innuendos.

    “I raised some serious issues in that essay, which were clearly above her level; I avoided personal insults. That is what civilised people do. She should learn from that and address the issues that were raised rather than spend her time trying to kill the messenger.

    “When someone says that God is the author of fatal crashes, you know that it is not the same God that we worship as that person. It is devil that causes accidents and kills people; not God. You can say that a fatal accident is an act of God only if the devil is your god.

    “When I speak and write, I am under the influence of one thing and one thing alone – the Spirit of the Living God who sees through her and who knows her for what she is.

    “She is the one that is under the influence of one thing or the other and not me. She is the one whose hands are filled with blood. She is the one that must bury her head in shame and no-one else. I will pray for her because she needs it and I will pray for Nigeria to. May God deliver us from these people.”

     

  • Crashed plane’s victims’ DNA for analysis in UK

    Crashed plane’s victims’ DNA for analysis in UK

    Minister attacks critics 

    Why Dana was suspended, by Oduah

    Blood samples collected from victims of last Thursday’s plane crash in Lagos and those of their families are due for a British laboratory today for testing.

    Sources told The Nation yesterday that forensic experts at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), Ikeja, decided to fast track the process after completing the deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) samples collection.

    The result is expected in Lagos between three and four weeks, starting from the date the samples arrive at the UK laboratory.

    A sister of one of the victims, Mr Chijioke Duru, Mrs Nkechi Nweke, demanded for his body “since it was identifiable”.

    Mr Yinka Alabi, a brother-in-law to another victim, Mrs E.O Alabi, urged the government to release identifiable bodies.

    The Chief Pathologist and Examiner, Lagos State, Prof John Obafunwa, said some of the identifiable bodies would be released to their families once the identification and documentation have been completed.

    He said the DNA examination and delay that may be experienced were to ensure proper identification of bodies and receipt by the right relatives.

    Also yesterday, Aviation Minister Stella Oduah defended the sector’s integrity. She said despite the recent plane crashes and the near mishaps, Nigeria’s airspace is one of the safest.

    Speaking with State House correspondents, Mrs. Oduah maintained that Nigeria, according to an International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) report, is the 12th most safe in global aviation.

    According to her, Nigeria scored 65 per cent, which is above the global average.

    Describing the critics of the on-going reforms in the aviation sector as ignorant, Mrs. Oduah said that security and safety in the sector could not be achieved without adequate funding.

    She claimed that the suspension of Dana Air operations, which followed last week Thursday’s fatal Associated Airline crash in Lagos, was not a fire brigade response – as seen in some circles.

    The Minister claimed that the suspension was done in line with the law and policy of certification, which she said is a constant assessment of operators to ensure they are in compliance.

    She urged Nigerians to ignore such comments that have no bearing with reality.

    Reacting to the allegations that the ministry under her is dwelling more on money making in the sector than safety, she said: “I think it is ignorant – to start with because you cannot have security and safety without funding it; it has to be funded. If you are talking safety, for instance you need to have the infrastructure that addresses that. If you are talking security you need to have the infrastructure that addresses that and all that must be sustained and must be maintained. And if you do not do that, you are not just being sincere.”

    “And then when you talk about the issue of renovation, the terminal itself is the first safety and security facility that any passenger comes across. And so in a plan you must start from A to Z. And in aviation, it is often said that if you think safety and security is expensive, wait until accident happens and see how expensive it is.

    “And so everything we have done has been with security and safety as a pivotal of it all. You cannot do anything in aviation without these. And what saddens me really is that ICAO says just last week that Nigeria is way above the global average; we actually scored 65 per cent. Secondly, ICAO says Nigeria is the 12th most safe aviation globally. And then when you hear bar comments, drunk and addicts making comments that have zero bearing on reality is very annoying.”

    She went on: “What I will advise the public really is to recognise the fact that aviation is a very professional area; you cannot listen to bar comments because they are just unrealistic and totally untrue.

    “We do not pray for accidents, but it is inevitable. But all we do is to do everything to ensure that we do not have accidents. But it is an act of God. Again, we do not speculate on the cause of accidents until that happens you can say this is the cause or that is not the cause. But what is obvious and it’s the truth is that in aviation, there are shared responsibilities, starting from the man that carries your luggage to the man that makes sure that your boarding pass is issued to you.”

    “And so, the regulatory agency, the operators, the management, everybody have their responsibility and all must work in tandem for there to be an optimal, secured and safe aviation sector. And that is what we have been working on.”

    Stressing that Nigeria has been given exemplary roles in international seminars and conferences, Mrs. Oduah said that Nigeria would host a global space conference from today.

    “Nigeria is hosting it. We are not hosting it because we can afford it. We are hosting it because we are exemplary. Every nation wants to emulate what we have done within such a short time to be able to have a safe air space,” she said, adding:

    “Secondly, we are producing the first ever black president of ICAO. It is unprecedented. Why? Because they have to judge you based on how secure your airports are, how your facilities have improved and we went through all that and every nation steps down and says that it is Nigeria’s time and Nigeria must have the first ever black president.”

    On Dana’s suspension, Ms. Oduah said: “Again, those are operational issues. And the law, the policy says that the assessment, the certification is ongoing. In aviation, security and safety measures are work in progress; you don’t stop. You don’t say that I have attained this and so we stop; it never stops. You continuously, constantly assess operators to make sure they are in compliance.”

    Denying fire brigade response, Ms. Oduah said: “No! Nothing in aviation is ever fire brigade because there are processes and procedure; nothing at all. And their licence was not stopped. What was stopped is their operations and it was stopped because the law says that if there is anything noticed not in tandem with the policy, the regulator must stop and recertify and make sure that there is compliance”.

    Declining to mention the regulations, she said: “I am not at liberty to say so. But that is the reason why their operations were suspended; we cannot joke with safety and security. It is not even optional. It is the way things are done; it is part of the policy.”

    On why investigations were not concluded before authorising Dana Air to fly, she said: “It was concluded and, like I said, the process certifying, recertifying, security and safety is continuous. It doesn’t stop. You can get your certification today and in a month’s time or even a week down the line something may happen because constantly the papers, the documents, the log books are constantly being checked”.

    On the Associated Airline crash investigations, Ms. Oduah said: “We are still on it. The preliminary report should be out in a couple of weeks. The experts that are coming from France and the manufacturer of the aircraft, we must have them regardless of how we want to accelerate it. We are waiting for them to come so that we can open the engine and find out exactly from them. And you cannot do any of those without their presence. If you do that, then you have contaminated the investigation, so we must wait for them”.

    She also denied the allegations that charges in the sector were too high and making operators not to cope.

    “You know when you ask me that, that doesn’t sound well. Does it? It is really a very terrible thing. Let’s start with the fact that 90 per cent of private operators are operating outside the mandate and outside the policy. And that was why we had to review the policy in the first place.”

    “Two, for the fact that they are operating from what in my view is called “the closet”, unregulated, unmonitored, uncontrolled, it is unacceptable. Because you are carrying Nigerians, and prominent Nigerians for that matter, you must have to be in compliance with the policy. And so the policy was a grey area prior to this time,.”

    “We have removed the grey and made it black and white so it becomes a normal GOT operations. And for you to operate GOT you must pay the landing fee, navigational fee, maintenance fee for those apron that you use. Except if you are telling us that because they are big men that we shouldn’t charge them then by all means we will accept.” She added

  • Oduah eulogises him

    Minister of Aviation Princess Stella Oduah has described the death of former Ondo State Governor Dr. Olusegun Agagu as shocking and unfortunate.

    She said the Aviation family had lost a great resource at a time his experience and knowledge were becoming invaluable to the transformation in the sector.

    Oduah spoke in a statement through her Special Adviser on Media Matters, Mr. Joe Obi.

    She said: “He brought transparency and merit to bear on the running of not only Ondo State, but also the Aviation sector. As a man, who shunned nepotism and mediocrity, Agagu would be remembered as the only Aviation minister in the era of the Nigeria Airways, who publicly advertised the vacant position of managing director of the defunct national carrier.

    “He would also be remembered as the minister, who strengthened and gave character to the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) and the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) during the Olusegun Obasanjo administration.

    “As an academic, Agagu brought great circumspection into the art of governance, making the security and welfare of his people the cornerstone of his administration.

    “As the nation builds up to the politics of 2015, Agagu’s intellect, calm disposition and politics devoid of bitterness would have come handy in a landscape strewn with desperate politicians, who are ready to do anything and everything to gain power. The political space will miss this astute politician, who bore power with grace.

    “My deep thoughts, condolences and prayers remain with his family, the people and government of Ondo State and the aviation family. May the Almighty God give all of us the fortitude to bear this painful passage.”

  • Oduah seeks military partnership

    MInister of Aviation Princss Stella Oduah has called for collaboration between civil and military aviation to enhance safety quality.

    She made the call in Abuja at the while receiving the Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshall Alex Sabundu Badeh.

    Oduah said her ministry would consider the request of the Air Force to rehabilitate and reopen the Mubi and Kaduna Airstrips in Maiduguri and Kaduna to ease military operations in the fight against Boko Haram Oduah said:”For us, it is very crucial to have proper collaboration between Civil and Military Aviation. It is the only way we can all work in peace; and when we work in peace we need efficient airports and operations that will be hitch-free and seamless.”

    She called for regular fora where stakeholders could address challenges that affect air safety and security, adding a situation at the airports where there are different and conflicting command and control centres, is not healthy for the system.

    “I think it doesn’t tell well of us that we are in a country where the Air Force Commandant is saying one thing and the Airport Manager or Director of Operations is saying something else, and this is not good for our passengers. And because we are in civilian times and we are also dealing with international passengers, we have to be seen as coordinating and collaborating well.

    “We must have a collaboration platform in all our airports because this will narrow the Command and Control centres, “ she said, adding that it is important to have a clear line of command in airport operation. “We need each other for the Nigerian airspace to be safe and to have an efficient aviation sector”, Oduah said.

    Earlier, Badeh told the minister that the Force has no objection to housing a Perishable Cargo terminal within the Makurdi Air Base.

    He commended the Ministry of Aviation, through the NCAA for granting the Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT), Kaduna the status of an Aviation Training Institution and for availing the Force the use of the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology (NCAT), Zaria to train its pilots and Air Traffic Controller (ATCs).

    He disclosed that AFIT is currently building Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) which President Goodluck Jonathan would soon be requested to unveil to Nigerians.

    He said the Force remains grateful to the Minister for granting it permission to reopen the Mubi airstrip which will boost the fight against terrorism and insurgency in the North.

    “I want to thank you for granting us the permission to reopen the Mubi airstrip. We gave reasons in our letter; this fight against Boko Haram, if you need to carry troops, the army will need to go from Yola to Mubi and it is three hours. It is too long a time to go and give succour or to go and protect people who need help.

    So it is important to reopen it for military operations and quick evacuation”, the Air Chief declared, and appealed for the resurfacing of the runway and that in Kaduna airstrip.