Suspend Nigeria Air project, Reps tell Aviation ministry

The House of Representatives Committee on Aviation has asked the Federal Ministry of Aviation to immediately halt the Nigeria Air project.

The resolution came during an investigative hearing on Tuesday just as the Managing Director of the airline, Capt Dayo Olumide, confirmed that the unveiled airplane launched about three days to the end of the Muhammadu Buhari administration was chattered from Ethiopia for a few days to showcase the logo to Nigerians.

The House committee made resolution after Olumide and Permanent Secretary of the Aviation ministry had appeared before it.

Chairman of the committee, Nmolim Nnaji, said the Nigeria Air project was shrouded in secrecy.
He urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to constitute a high-level Presidential Committee to undertake a holistic Review of the Processes of the whole Nigeria Air project and advise the government on the way forward.
It also urged that all individuals, or groups, or organisations involved in the controversial “Nigeria Air take-off are brought to book, prosecuted and sanctioned.”
The resolution read in part, “A careful review of the process indicates the exercise to be highly opaque, shrouded in secrecy, shoddy and capable of ridiculing and tarnishing the image of Nigeria before the international community. We want to put on record, that the Committee and indeed the National Assembly had no role in the purported launch of Nigeria Air or anything related thereof.”

Eight years after, aviation agencies board members constituted 

President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the immediate constitution of the boards of aviation agencies.
This is coming almost a decade of running the agencies without boards.

The approval which was one of the last assignments of Buhari as President came through his Minister of Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika.

The Federal Government since the inception of the Buhari administration failed to inaugurate boards of the six aviation agencies despite that their Acts made the boards mandatory.
The agencies are the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology (NCAT), the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) and the recently created Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB).
The boards were constituted in the first tenure of President Muhammadu Buhari but their inauguration was stalled because the composition then was said not to be in line with the Acts establishing the agencies.

But a statement issued on Sunday by the Ministry of Aviation said that Buhari had approved the composition of the boards.

The statement signed by the Head of Press and Public Affairs in the Ministry, Odutayo Oluseyi indicated that the NCAA would be chaired by Mr Lai Are with two institutional members representing Ministries of Aviation and Defence.

FAAN would be chaired by Capt. Fola Akinkuotu with five institutional members representing the Ministries of Aviation, Defence, Justice and Tourism and NCAT while Capt. Mukhtar Aminu and Mr. Chris Aligbe are members.

NAMA has Capt. Bashir Sodangi as Chairman with four institutional members representing Ministries of Aviation, Communications and Digital Economy, Transportation and Nigerian Air Force as well as two other members to represent public interest. They are Mr. Richard Aisuegbon and Suleiman Balarabe Ismail.
The NSIB would be chaired by Engr. Ezekiel Danboyi Zang with six other members including Engr. Suraj Abdulwahab, Engr. Ita Awak, Mall. Nasiru Anas, Alhaji Sani Maida, Engr. Pantani Esugo and Lawrence Fubara Anga, SAN.
Dr. Imoro Kubor is to chair the NiMet Board with four institutional members representing Ministries of Aviation, Agriculture and Natural, Resources, Environment and Transportation with Dr. Adebayo Yinka and Prof. Aliyu Umar Tambuwal as members.

And lastly NCAT would be chaired by Capt. Jonathan Ibrahim with institutional members which include Ministry of Aviation, NCAA, Nigeria’s ICAO representative; Representative of the aviation sector, Engr. Bashir Saad; Hajia Binta Aminu Iya representing community; Representative of the College elected from the congregation who should be a non-teaching staff and the college registrar.

The statement added, “It should be noted that, in line with the recently promulgated and gazetted Acts of the Agencies, membership of their Boards are mostly institutional representations. The President therefore considered the requirements in approving the memberships and hopes that they will play the necessary roles in furthering the development of the sector as a new administration takes over.”

Finally Sirika delivers Nigeria Air, plane lands at Abuja airport

The Nigeria Air aircraft has landed at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA), Abuja.
Hadi Sirika, minister of aviation, disclosed this in a tweet on Friday, ending doubts about the new national carrier becoming a reality.
The aircraft was earlier in the day sighted at Addis Ababa Bole International Airport in Ethiopia preparing to take off.

Sirika had stated that the aircraft was on its way to Nigeria in less than 24 hours.
The development however created some uproar as some stakeholders questioned the rationale behind the launch of a national carrier barely 72 hours to the end of President Muhammadu Buhari administration.
They wondered how the aircraft could fly into the country without getting an Air Operating Certificate from the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority.

AON suit against new airline

Nigeria Air’s plan to obtain the Air Operator Certificate (AOC) from the NCAA was hindered with the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) filing a restraining order to stop the aviation regulator from issuing the certificate.

The restraining order letter dated April 19, 2023, came via lawyer representing the AON, Abubakar Nuhu Ahmed, warning the NCAA against taking action that would ridicule the integrity of the agency.