By LAWANI MIKAIRU

House of Representatives Committee on Aviation on Wednesday condemned the decision of the federal government to use foreign airlines to evacuate stranded Nigerians abroad when there are three Nigerian airlines that can effectively carry out the evacuation.

The position of the committee was made known by the Chairman, Hon. Nnolim Nnaji who called on the federal government to revert to capable indigenous operators to carry out the evacuation exercise.

Nnaji frowned at the engagement of Ethiopian Airlines, British Airways, and Emirates to airlift stranded Nigerians from Dubai, London, and America by the Foreign Affairs Ministry and the Presidential Task Force, (PTF) on COVID 19.

He, therefore, called for the immediate cancellation of the contracts and the reversal to the capable domestic operators noting that America and Britain recently evacuated their citizens from Nigerian without the use of other countries’ carriers.

Nnaji said: “The action of those responsible for this action is not only a disservice to the local airlines which have done their best to provide patriotic service to Nigerians but equally detrimental to our national pride and dignity. The Aviation Minister should revoke the landing rights already granted the three airlines”.

According to a schedule released by the Foreign Affairs Ministry, the first batch of evacuees of 265 from Dubai would arrive Nigeria Wednesday, May 6, 2020, another 300 are to arrive from London on Friday, May 10 on British Airways and on Monday, 11th May Ethiopian Airline will airlift those coming from the United States of America.

Honourable Nnaji who represents Nkanu East/West Federal!l Constituency in the Federal House of Representatives strongly believed that there are capable Nigerian operators with long haul aircraft that can handle the operations that should have been engaged by the Task Force.

According to him, “I am aware that Air Peace has three Boeing 777, Max Air has four Boeing 747 and Azman recently acquired Airbus A340-600 series which can be deployed for these charters. Air Peace, apart from the operations it did to evacuate Nigerians from South Africa during the xenophobic attacks last year has handled two special charters this COVID 19 period to China for medical evacuation and to Israel to evacuate Israeli National out of Nigeria and Max Air has been operating in Hajj without hitches”.

“Why can’t we for once begin to believe in ourselves, why must we look outside for everything? I was thinking that the lessons of this prevailing pandemic would make us change our ways of doing things. Nigerians must demand explanations for this action of the PTF”, the House Committee Chairman on Aviation said. (Vanguard)

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