House of Representatives has said it would summon the Governor of Central Bank, Godwin Emefiele, Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, Minister of Finance and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed and representatives of Emirates Airline to a meeting, following the $464million trapped forex face-off between the Federal Government and the international airlines’ operators in the country.
Others invited are; the Director-General of Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA); Country Representative of IATA; Emirate Country Manager; Chairmen of House Committees on Banking & Currency, and Finance, respectively.
Reps in a statement issued by the Clerk of the House, Yahaya Danzaria, Friday, in Abuja, said the Speaker, Femi Gbajabiamila, and the Leadership of the House of Representatives have been briefed on the withdrawal notice of services issued by some international airline operators in the country.
Danzaria said the Speaker had directed the Chairman of the House Committee on Aviation, Rep. Nnoli Nnaji, and the management of the House to immediately set a date for a meeting with all stakeholders in the aviation sector and the executive arm of government to find urgent solutions to the issues in contention.
The statement further stated that the date for the meeting would be communicated to all the concerned parties.
It would be recalled that Emirates, on Thursday, announced its suspension of all flights to Nigeria over failure to repatriate its trapped ticket sales fund.
“Therefore, Emirates has taken the difficult decision to suspend all flights to and from Nigeria, effective 1 September 2022, to limit further losses and impact on our operational costs that continue to accumulate in the market.”
Recall also IATA on Friday hinted how airlines’ funds held by the Federal Government will hurt Nigeria’s economy, if not repatriated on time.
“Airlines can’t be expected to fly if they can’t realize revenue from ticket sales. Loss of connectivity harms the economy, hurts investor confidence, and impacts jobs and people’s lives.”
“The Government of Nigeria needs to prioritize the release of the funds before more damage is done.”
