‘Sirika Lied On National TV’ — Air Peace Counters Ex-Aviation Minister’s Claim

Air Peace has countered the claims made by the former Aviation minister, Hadi Sirika on Nigeria Air, saying that the outgone government official lied on national Television (TV).

Sirika appeared on Arise TV on Sunday where he clarified allegations surrounding the controversy about Nigeria Air.

During his interview, he said that Air Peace suspended its flights to Dubai due to lack of capacity, adding that the airline had lost $19m after leasing two Boeing 777 aircraft on a monthly lease fee of $250,000.

The outgone Aviation minister during his presentation further claimed that the two aircraft were leased before Air Peace was ready to fly.

Air Peace on Monday, however, issued a press release signed by its Chief Operating Officer, Air Peace, Toyin Olajide, to state that Sirika lied about some of the claims he made.

“This is a blatant lie as we have three and not two Boeing 777 aircraft which were never leased or rented, but were purchased outrightly by the airline,” Olajide said.

“Air Peace never incurred such a loss, we never paid rentals contrary to his lies. The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) can attest to the purchase and ownership of the aircraft by Air Peace.”

On the allegation that Air Peace stopped flying to Dubai because of a lack of capacity, the COO said the airline never stopped the Dubai operations because of lack of capacity.

According to Olajide, the airline commenced operations in the UAE in July 2019, but in October 2022, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) government announced a total visa ban on Nigerians.

“Neither Emirates nor Air Peace is operating the Nigerian/UAE route since the ban. The persisting non-issuance of visas and the accompanying inconveniences necessitated the suspension of our Dubai operations from November 22, 2022, till date,” Olajide added.

“For the former minister to ascribe the suspension to ‘lack of capacity’ is not only shocking but also shows how keen he is to disparage an airline whose (sic) ascendancy has defied all the commercial odds and hostile environment placed on its path to continue to serve our nation proudly.

“How could an airline that placed a firm order for 13 brand new E2-195 aircraft, a firm order of 15 Boeing 737 Max 8 and Max 10, with over 30 aircraft already in its existing fleet be accused of lacking in capacity?

“How can an airline that stood up for the entire nation during the Covid-19 outbreak, and embarked on rescue operations worldwide, evacuating Nigerians from faraway China, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, India, UK, and South Africa during the Covid-19 lockdowns be accused of lacking in capacity?,” the Air Peace COO asked.

Olajide thereafter implored the general public to disregard these lies told by the former minister of aviation against Air Peace during the Arise TV Interview.

Meanwhile, the ongoing investigative hearing by the House of Representatives Committee on Aviation has brought to the fore startling revelations about Nigeria Air.

Data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and annual budgetary figures indicate that about N85 billion was committed to this project between 2016 and 2023 which has, however, turned out to be a huge scam.

The House of Reps Committee on Aviation last Tuesday also said that the launch of Nigeria Air by the Buhari administration was a fraud done in secrecy.

It specifically accused Sirika of not carrying the National Assembly along in the whole process of establishing the national carrier.