Min. Hadi Sirika, the Minister of Aviation, has yesterday said that Arik Air is not qualified as the national carrier.
The minister while briefing State House correspondents after a meeting of the Federal Executive Council presided over by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo said that:
“Arik, as presently constituted, is not in line with the thinking of the ministry. It will not be able to give us that airline that we need.
“However, Arik as an entity, since it is private-sector driven, can either buy shares in the new ventures or invest in any manner in the business as presently approved.
“The carrier that I intend to bring is such a carrier that will support the national economy, with $450m GDP for 200m people, very equipped to compete favorably.
“We are not saying once we have a national carrier, every other airline goes down. No. It is our duty to continue to support businesses,”
Hadi Sirika Daiytrust.com.ng
The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, said the FEC approved N5.72bn for construction and consultancy services of the National Deposit Insurance Corporation offices.
The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, said the FEC approved N718m for the supply of land mobile security scanner for Lagos Port.
