National Carrier: Aviation sector stakeholder tasks FG

Mohammed Joji, the General Secretary, Airline Operators Association of Nigeria (AOAN), has urged the Federal Government to create an enabling environment for a strong national carrier to emerge.

Joji  said that a private sector-driven initiative was the best way to go rather than the government spending money to establish a strong national carrier.

He said that a strong national carrier could be established by allowing private investors to put in their money in form of stocks with the government giving them the required backing.

“What the government can do is to create an enabling environment for investors to put in their money as stocks while government will only give them the backing through what is called sweat equity.

“That way, a strong national carrier can be established and both the government and the investors will be happy and such national carrier will be competitive.

“It does not necessarily mean that government should put in money for a country to have a strong national carrier.’’

Joji, however, criticised the Ahmed Joda Committee’s recommendation on the aviation sector, arguing that the idea of merging indebted airlines to form a national carrier was wrong.

According to him, it is wrong to suggest that because somebody owed the government, his business ideas should be taken over by the government.

“The best thing to do is to formulate policies that can help government recover the money owed by the airlines and not converting their investments to national assets,” Joji said.

It was reported that the Ahmed Joda Committee had advised President Muhammadu Buhari administration to establish a public-private partnership with all the airlines affiliated with Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), in order to subsidise a national carrier.

NAN