Barely 24 hours after the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) reminded the Federal Government on a pending court injunction restraining it from flagging of the proposed national carrier – Nigeria Air – until the determination of the suit before it, the Minister of Aviation, Sen. Hadi Sirika, has insisted that the planned kick off of the carrier’s operations before May 29.would still be actualized
The Minister told journalists in Abuja that all arrangements had been made for the smooth take-off of the proposed airline after the earlier scheduled timeline had been postponed twice due logistic and other challenges.
He said: “Nigeria Air Limited, I did say that we will get it going before the end of this administration and I have not withdrawn my words. We have everything in place, the aircraft are in place, the offices, operational centres, the staffing and everything that we need to have in place.
We’re doing the last-minute checks and waiting for the issuance of the AOC and it will fly. It will fly and it will be for the benefit of this country, for the size of population, the travelling public and what it does to the economy, especially to tourism, to African integration and to the AU Agenda 2063.
“It’s a very important project and I must say it will happen before the end of our tenure in the next four weeks and two days”, Sirika added.
It would be recalled that the AON had on Tuesday reminded the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) of the pending injunction against the issuance of Air Operators’ Certificate (AOC) to Nigeria Air.
The operators’ body through its counsel, Barr. Nureni Jimoh, cautioned the NCAA to discontinue further processing of the AOC and dealing with the minister of aviation or the ministry and its agents to avoid judicial sanctions
The AON incorporated trustees comprising Azman Air, Air Peace, Max Air, United Nigeria and Top Brass Airlines had filed a suit at the court to stop the national carrier project, while challenging the shareholding structure giving Ethiopian Airlines a controlling share of 49%.
The court presided over by Justice A. Lewis-Allagoa in November last year granted an order of interim injunction stopping the execution of the project.
The suit has, however stalled the take-off of the project.
But in a letter directed to the NCAA DG dated April 19, 2023, under a SUIT NO. FHC/L/CS/2159/20, with the title: Notification of court orders and signed by Abubákar Nuhu Ahmad Esq, the counsel reminded the regulatory of the pending order.
The letter reads in part: “The Federal High Court sitting in Lagos presided by Hon. Justice A.L Allagoa, in the above suit, granted orders of interim and interlocutory injunctions, in the terms contained in the order, restraining taking of any step in relation to the Nigeria Air project. Copies of each of the orders enclosed as Annexures 1, 2 &3.”
