Federal Government has been called upon to probe the financial commitment of the Minister of State, Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika to the suspended Nigeria Air project.
The call was made by the duo of the national Chairman and Secretary of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria(FAAN) branch of the Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP), Comrade Rasaki Ope and Comrade Emeka Njoku.
They were reacting to the recent indefinite suspension of the Nigeria Air project by the government a fortnight ago. The action of the government, they said was a vindication of their stance since last year to the effect that the Minister has not been transparent from the beginning on the way he had been handling the national carrier project.
For example, they noted that the Minister ought to have caused the publication for interested technical partners in the relevant government journal and national newspapers calling for interested bidders, adding that:"Such biddings, to ensure transparency ought to have opened at a forum where observers would be invited to witness the opening of bids that would eventually lead to a winner, who would eventually be chosen as technical partner(s)"
They opined "that it is the duty of the technical partner and the private investors in the project that will then chart the direction and form the new national carrier will take, since Sirika told Nigerians that the venture will be privately driven and that the Federal Government will not be spending a kobo in floating the new national carrier."
They said it was a surprise when the same Minister made a sudden turn around early this year to say that government would be taking 5% amounting to $300million and the remaining 95% by investors.
Comrade Ope and Comrade Emeka also queried :" What is the business of the Minister, representing the government as minority share holder in dictating the pace for the majority share holders and spending millions on designing the logo and embarked on a jamboree to unveil the logo, not in Nigeria but in far away Farnborough, UK?
They said it was due to the lack of transparency on the part of the Minister from the beginning that informed their opposition and more so, workers of the liquidated Nigeria Airways have not been paid their retirement benefits fifteen years after while many have died and the Minister wanted to be " dancing on the graves of the dead in lieu of the Nigeria Air project. It is sad".
All these, they noted must have informed government's decision to suspend the take off of Nigeria Air in December,2018 as planned by the Minister.
On approval for the release of 50% of Nigeria Airways retirees by President Mohammadu Buhari as announced by the Finance Minister, they commended the move, but noted that they have heard about approvals severally, and that until affected retirees received the cash before :" we can shout hallelujah. "
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