Trapped funds: FG to sanction airlines selling tickets in foreign currencies, denies spending N14.6bn on Air Nigeria

Federal Government has threatened to sanction any airline operating in the country selling flight tickets in foreign currencies.

This is also as the government denied spending N14.6 billion on the national carrier, Air Nigeria, project.

Fielding questions by State House Correspondents at the end of the virtual meeting of the Federal Executive Council (FEC), Wednesday, in Abuja, the Minister of Aviation, Sen. Hadi Sirika, expressed displeasure at foreign airlines selling tickets in dollars, warning that the Federal Government would sanction such violators of the relevant Nigerian law.

The warning follows the controversy over the issue of repatriation of trapped funds in the country, as most foreign airlines issued notices of shutting down their flight operations into Nigeria, as a result.

Emirates Airlines and British Airways already announced shutting down flights into Nigeria over the trapped funds, which the Gulf carrier had claimed ran into $80 million. Similarly, Nigerian carriers operating international operations like Air Peace, had also shut down its Johannesburg flights owing to the trapped funds, among other factors.

However, the matter temporarily rested when the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), penultimate week,

released the sum of $265 million to airlines operating in the country, to settle outstanding ticket sales.

A breakdown of the figure indicated that the sum of $230 million was released as special FX intervention while another sum of $35 million was released through Retail SMIS auction.

Confirming the release, the director, Corporate Communications Department at the CBN, Osita Nwanisobi, said the Governor, Godwin Emefiele and his team were concerned about the development and what it portends for the sector and travelers as well as the country in the comity of nations.

At the FEC media briefing, Wednesday, Sirika also described as irresponsible media report that the Federal Government had so far expanded N14.6 billion on Nigeria Air project.

According to the minister, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has been instructed to swing into action by protecting the interest of Nigerians against reported airlines’ operations malpractices.

He warned that no violator, no matter how highly placed, would be spared if caught in the act.

According to him, findings at government’s disposal have indicated that some of the airlines are refusing naira and charging their ticket fares in dollars in violation of the country’s laws.

”I want to use this opportunity to say that reports are reaching us that some of the airlines are refusing to sell tickets in naira. That is a violation of our local laws, they will not be allowed.

”The high and the mighty amongst them will be sanctioned, if they’re caught doing that.

”NCAA had been directed to swing into action and once we find any airline violating this, we will definitely deal with them. Also, they blocked the travel agents from access.

”They also made only the expensive tickets available and so on so forth.

”Our regulators are not sleeping, we have a very vibrant Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority. Once they found any airline guilty, that airline will be dealt with because we need to protect our people,” the minister said.

The minister further disclosed that the foreign airlines made over 1.1 billion dollars from Nigeria in 2016, when the Buhari’s administration cleared the 600 million dollars it inherited from previous government.

Sirika recalled that the airlines remitted over 600 million dollars to their home countries in 2016 while over 265 million dollars had also been released this year out of about 484 million dollars due to them.

According to him, the government is trying to keep the airlines happy by ensuring that their money does not pile up again, saying that while the country needs their services, the airlines need the Nigerian market.

The minister warned them to refrain from using the social media to press home their demands rather than resorting to the diplomatic channels.

Sirika also described as irresponsible media report that the Federal Government had so far expanded N14.6 billion on Nigeria Air project.

According to him, that government has only spent N651 million (N352 million and N299 million) for what he called transactional advisory services approved by the FEC, but yet to be disbursed as the consultants were yet to finish their work

”So Nigeria Air is of course, we are going to come very soon to council for approval of the full business case.

”The activity is a Public Private Partnership, which is guided by the ICRC regulations, Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission.

“We have diligently followed that. And I want to seize the opportunity to say that we have been reading newspaper reports, especially those that I have maximum respect for like the Guardian, which put out a sensational article on the front page.

”That the Federal Government of Nigeria has spent N14 billion on national carrier and they did nothing – this is absurd,” Sirika said.