Nigeria’s lopsided BASAs: Chickens have now come home to roost

Looking at the scenarios that had and still unfolding with the outbreak of Omicron COVID-19 variant and the use of Nigeria as a scapegoat by many countries around the world, rather than cry blue murder, the time has come for all, particularly the ordinary Nigerians to look at themselves in the mirror and check if the general description of the country and its citizens as fools by some foreign writers is accurate or not.

It is no more hidden how, since the outbreak of the Omicron, countries around the world have tightened up activities around their airports particularly against countries they see as dangerous through where the pandemic could be imported into their countries.

Therefore, it was no surprise that such countries have clearly identified some African countries including Nigeria as ‘no-go’ areas for air travels for now. The criteria they used in selecting those countries are issues left for them and the purpose.

Though many of the countries have since recanted but the manner and the uncivilised ways some of the foreign countries have come out to directly target Nigeria in their move have only shown the lack of respect they have for the country and its citizens. The disrespect is not even limited to the foreign powers as some tiny African countries are seriously benefiting from the humiliation.

Prior to Omicron, many countries around the world have been jolted with the level of greed, corruption and lack of patriotism being displayed by those elected into public offices as seen in the way they run the affairs of the country.

Many of these countries who have now turned against Nigeria are doing so because they know so much about the criminal activities already perpetrated and still being perpetrated by these so called leaders and government officials as many are known to have made their illegal wealth which they smuggled out of the country to some of these foreign countries for their families and even their unborn generations.

It is also on record that these illegal and stolen monies have been used to develop these so-called foreign countries which now turned around to castigate all Nigerians at any slightest provocation.

A typical of such insults recently hurled at the generality of Nigerians came from a British writer while reacting to the outrage against the inclusion of Nigeria by Britain on the red list of Omicron countries.

His words, “Nigeria and Nigerians think that the British are stupid and ignorant but the ignorant and stupid ones are the Nigerians who complain about UK protecting itself.

“If Nigeria, the country and its citizens want to put themselves in harm’s way, that’s fine and nobody will stop them, however, all will be done to stop them. The British don’t need Nigeria or Nigerians, whatever Nigeria has can be sought elsewhere so it is high time Nigeria and Nigerians understood that they aren’t indispensable.”

These are strong words coming against the generality of Nigerians and this could be painful in the sense that all Nigerians are now being taken for fools.

The carelessness on the part of Nigerian leaders and the government officials can be traced to these general negative assumptions which in actual fact can be found in all the sectors and other fabrics of the society.

Coming to the aviation sector in particular, prior to Omicron, key players across the sector had and still are raising their voices against many of the over 90 Bilateral Air Services Agreements (BASA) that Nigeria signed with foreign countries with majority of the agreements found to be favourable to the foreign countries and responsible for the woes of the sector especially its domestic airline business.

It is only here in Nigeria that those who were supposed to negotiate with foreign countries on behalf of Nigeria chose to take positions that ended up being disadvantageous towards the country for selfish reasons.

Many of such officials, particularly those at the BASA Directorate in the Ministry of Aviation, often rush to sign these agreements for political gains without economic benefits to the country after receiving their juicy estacodes.

It will still be recalled how a former Minister of Aviation had openly cried out over how some officials in the ministry had engaged in signing such bad agreements behind his back.

The attitude of the BASA officials at the ministry, which had been questioned, for long coupled with many calls for the total overhaul of the directorate was ignored by the government, but unfortunately, the chickens have now come home to roost.

The essence of their shenanigans has now boomeranged as seen in the way many of the foreign countries now take everyone for a fool in Nigeria.

How can a BASA official who knows the interpretation of air agreements, and is expected to sit on the negotiating table to defend his country with foreign countries, prefer to shortchange the country for peanuts or whatever.

While some of the BASAs allow such foreign countries to enjoy loose frequencies and multiple entry points, the smart foreign countries capitalise on the unprofessional conducts of the Nigerian representatives to corner the juicy parts of the agreements.

Why won’t such countries treat Nigerians as fools and why won’t they take actions that would denigrate the entire country?

Now the time has come for a total review of the lopsided BASAs with total investigations of the BASA’s directorate and possibly the ministry.

All these ‘watery’ agreements signed in the past are mainly responsible for the ‘see finish’ type of humiliation the country and its citizens are being globally subjected to.

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