Ahead of the planned midwife of a flag carrier for the country in the aviation sector this year, the Minister of State for Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, has assured that the December 2018 takeoff date of the proposed national carrier remains unchanged.
Sirika gave the assurance while receiving the Outline Business Case Certificate of Compliance from the director general of the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), Mr. Chidi Izuwah.
He assured that the national carrier to be delivered would be world class in operation and management.
According to the minister, the presentation of the certificate was an official approval of the process through which the project had gone so far.
He commended the efforts of the ICRC director general and his team in ensuring that the national carrier project has remained on track through the observation of all legal aid regulatory frameworks.
The minister also expressed satisfaction with the way the transaction advisers carried out their assignments with utmost diligence and timeliness.
He debunked the claim that the national carrier would sound the death knell for other airlines operating in the country.
In his remarks, Izuwah said the presentation of the certificate was an official green light to proceed with the procurement process.
He also said the certificate was granted on the condition that the federal government “has committed to leveraging on private sector capital and expertise towards the establishment of the national carrier through the provision of a viability gap funding for the project.”
Furthermore, he said the other condition for granting the certificate of compliance was an official commitment to zero contribution to airline management decisions and zero government control.
“Any attempt to impose government control would invalidate the certificate and the entire process,” he warned.
The ICRC director general commended the minister for his commitment to changing the face of aviation in Nigeria through infrastructural renaissance stressing that “the PPP remains the only viable option for Nigeria in view of dwindling national resources.”
