As controversy rages on over the $600 million being the accumulated funds of the foreign airlines that got trapped in Nigeria, some key players have wondered why Nigeria should be among the countries flouting rules guiding Bilateral Air Service Agreements (BASA).
Among those who have shown reservations towards the withholding of the trapped funds in violation of the BASA agreements is the Managing Director of Centurion Aviation Security and a former military commandant of the Lagos Airport, Group Captain John Ojikutu (retired), who faulted Nigeria on not keeping to the articles of the international air transport agreement.
Ojikutu used the opportunity to call for investigations into the forex earnings on commercial aviation particularly those earned on landing and parking regularly paid by the foreign airlines to the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) and the forex earnings paid even to the ground handling companies in Nigeria.
The retired Group Captain queried why the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) alone was being blamed, leaving out the ground handling companies and even the oil markets.
He said, “First, why do we find ourselves among the countries that are not keeping to the articles of the BASAs? Secondly, what happens to our forex earnings on commercial aviation, particularly those earned by the aviation services providers like the Passengers Service Charge (PSC) of $100 per passenger and those earned on landing and parking? What about the forex earnings by others like the ground handling services companies such as NAHCO, SAHCOL and the fuel marketers?
“My last calculation on all these is over $1 billion, but where are they before we start blaming the CBN that cannot account for the earnings and deposits from other forex earnings like NNPC, NPA, NIMASA, etc?
“Obasanjo said at the first public hearing on aviation ever held by any President in Aso Rock about 2006/2007 that forex earnings by aviation operators including the NCAA be domiciled in the CBN, Naira equivalent given to the operators but can be returned to the CBN when the needs arise, what happened to that presidential directive?
“What has been happening over the years in the Nigeria Commercial Aviation policies, regulations and administration are nothing but what I call unilateral exploitation of the systems.
“We are going to be the loser if the foreign airlines withdraw their services of flights to our country because about 70 to 80 per cent of our earnings in commercial aviation is from the foreign airlines. What will happen further will see Nigerians going to Accra, Cotonou, Lome, etc to connect the flights of these foreign airlines making them hubs over Nigeria. I saw this happen to us when a minister unilaterally cut off the Commercial Agreements between us and them and when we indirectly opened the domestic routes and markets to them for multiple destinations. The consequences are staring at us all, now who will save us from ourselves?”