Aviation minister Sirika agrees to pay off Nigeria Airways staff now that new carrier will not be launched

AVIATION minister Hadi Sirika has revealed that the federal government has approved the sum of N45bn ($124m) to fund severance packages for staff of the defunct Nigeria Airways which folded in 2005 now that plans to float a new carrier have been suspended.

 

In July at the Farnborough Air Show in Kent, in the UK, Mr Sirika, revealed plans to float a new national carrier called Nigeria Air. Pointing out that the airline would take off in December, Mr Sirika said that following extensive negotiations with several international airlines and aircraft manufacturers, it would fly to 80 different destination and have a fleet of 30 aircraft.

 

However, yesterday, the government announced that the plans were being put on hold and it is believed that this was because of objections from the government's Economic Management Team (EMT) chaired by vice president Professor Yemi Osinbajo. Apparently the EMT recommended that the Nigerian government should not set up a national carrier with public funds, which was accepted by the cabinet.

 

Now that the launch of Nigeria is no longer going ahead as planned, Mr Sirika looks like he is using the funds made available to him to pay off Nigeria Airways staff who were made redundant in 2005 and are yet to be paid their entitlements. Aviation unions had threatened to scuttle the launch of Nigeria Air unless the issue of these payments was addressed.

 

Mr Sirika said: “Governments, in the past, decided just to liquidate Nigeria Airways without tending to the issue of the entitlements of the workers and they have been struggling to get that paid. We came in and took it very seriously.

 

“I’m happy to announce that Mr President has approved N45bn which has been confirmed to be the entitlements of these workers and the ministry of finance has been instructed to pay the money. The ministry wrote to me last week that they have received the instruction to pay these workers and therefore, they are setting up the modalities to pay."

 

He added that the payments will not be made through the aviation ministry and that process will commence very soon. Earlier this year, the Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria had threatened to shut down all airports in the country and prevent the launch of Nigeria Air unless the Nigeria Airways staff were paid off in full.

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