Nigeria Air: Reps grill aviation, justice ministers today

The investigative hearing that was supposed to take place in the House of Representatives Committee on Aviation regarding the controversial launch of Air Nigeria, Nigeria’s national carrier, during the previous administration that was led by Muhammadu Buhari, has been rescheduled.

The committee had extended invitations to the relevant stakeholders, and the hearing was originally scheduled to take place in Abuja on Monday. However, representatives of the majority of the stakeholders had already left the location prior to the arrival of the committee’s Chairman, Nnolim Nnaji, who arrived approximately two hours after the scheduled time.

The committee has invited a variety of stakeholders, including the Ministry of Aviation, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Justice, Airline Operators of Nigeria, Ethiopian Airlines, as well as suppliers of aviation fuel (Jet-A1).

Nnaji, upon his arrival, extended his apologies to the individuals who had remained at the venue to wait for him, and he requested that the hearing be moved to 1:00 pm on Tuesday (today).

Due to the controversy that surrounded the national carrier, the Buhari administration had been unable, after eight years, to deliver Nigeria Air.

Under the aegis of the Airline Operators of Nigeria, the Federal Government of Nigeria had instituted a boycott of the country’s domestic airlines before entering into an agreement with Ethiopian Airlines to float the Nigerian carrier.

As a direct result of this, the AON had brought the government and its agencies before a court in an effort to halt the process.

According to reports, the Federal Government of the country took delivery of the first plane of the country’s national carrier, Nigeria Air, on Friday, at the twilight of the administration, despite protests from local operators that it was contrary to a court order that barred the government from taking further action on the project. This was done despite the fact that the administration was about to end.

In the meantime, the House of Representatives has issued subpoenas to the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emiefele, as well as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Auditor General for the Federation, and the Accountant General of the Federation in connection with the payment of N32.5 billion to two businesses, Messrs. GSCL Consulting and Biz Plus, without keeping formal records.

In addition, the House of Representatives has issued subpoenas to the Managing Directors and Chief Executive Officers of a number of oil companies, including Exxon Mobil and Nigeria Agip Oil Company, requesting that they appear before the chamber regarding petroleum deals in the country.

During Monday’s continued investigative hearing in Abuja, the House Ad Hoc Committee to Investigate Alleged Loss of Over $2.4 Billion in Revenue from Illegal Sale of 48 Million Barrels of Crude Oil Export in 2015 Including All Crude Oil Exports and Sales by Nigeria from 2014 Till Date issued the summons. The committee is looking into allegations that Nigeria lost more than $2.4 billion in revenue due to the illegal sale of 48 million barrels of crude oil export in 2015.

In the meantime, the committee questioned the Director-General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, Bashir Jamoh. Jamoh revealed to the lawmakers that the Federal Government had not yet claimed a judgement debt of approximately $1.7 billion from a company that was found guilty of making false declarations about the crude oil it took from Nigeria. The debt was owed by the company because it had taken crude oil from Nigeria.

On the other hand, Gbillah stated that records that were made available to the committee showed that the CBN paid N16.5 billion to each of two companies on the same day, and he added that the companies withdrew the said amount within a period of two months. The records were made available to the committee.

The chairman emphasised how important it was for the CBN to provide an explanation for the payments that were made to the companies, especially considering that Malami had denied having any knowledge of the payment.

Gbillah stated that all agencies, officials, and companies that have been summoned by the committee have a duty to respond to the summons, noting that even though the 9th House is winding down, it can still issue a bench warrant for their arrest. Gbillah also stated that despite the fact that the 9th House is winding down, it can still issue a bench warrant for their arrest.

After some time had passed, Jamoh revealed to the journalists that NIMASA was continuing to pursue the case in court.

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He explained, “In 2013, when the revenue profile was low, NIMASA was directed from the Attorney-General’s office to coordinate two technical teams in order to source data on the actual lifting of crude oil and the last destination point in order to determine if there are any discrepancies.”