THE Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Mr. Festus Keyamo (SAN), has reaffirmed the suspension of the Nigeria Air project.
Recall that last year, the then minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, unveiled Nigeria Air in a most controversial circumstance and just three days before the end of his stay in office and end the tenure of former President Muhammadu Buhari.
The manner of the unveiling and facts that emerged later had led to concerns among stakeholders over the true ownership arrangement, which gave Ethiopian Airlines a 49 per cent equity stake, the federal government, five per cent and a consortium of three Nigerian investors, 46 per cent.
In June last year, the House of Representatives asked the federal government to suspend the operations of Nigeria Air, which it described as a fraud.
In August last year, Keyamo announced the suspension of the national carrier project till further notice.
While offering updates on the matter at the ministerial press briefing in Abuja to mark President Bola Tinubu’s one year in office, Keyamo said the project was still suspended, noting: “It remains suspended. It was never Air Nigeria; it was not Air Nigeria. That’s the truth. It was only painted Air Nigeria. It was Ethiopian Airlines trying to flag our flag.
“If it is so, why not allow our local people to fly our flag? Why bring a foreigner to fly our flag? So, nobody should dispute that it was Air Nigeria.
“Air Nigeria must be indigenous, must be wholly Nigerian and must be for the full benefits of Nigeria, not that 50 per cent of the profit is for another country.”
Keyamo restated that the ownership structure of the suspended airline was not beneficial to the country.
