By Taiwo Adisa and Shola Adekola Tribune.com.ng
THE Minister of Aviation, Mrs Stella Oduah, on Monday, said Nigeria would not back down in its request for reduction in discriminatory air fares charged by foreign airlines.
The minister, who appeared before the Senate Committee on Aviation, during a public hearing in Abuja, said the price imbalance must be dismantled.
She said upon her resumption in office, she discovered that there was no basis for the disparity, adding that “I made it abundantly clear to the industry and specifically to British Airways and Virgin Atlantic that the imbalance will not be tolerated and must be dismantled.”
According to her, Nigeria supported profitable operations, but the profits must be reasonable.
She said that while the airlines were commercial entities, Nigeria will no longer accept the disparity.
Also, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Olugbenga Ashiru, who also appeared before the committee, said regulatory agencies in the aviation industry should be blamed for the discriminatory fares.
He, however, allayed the fear that the issue would develop into a diplomatic row.
The minister said the crisis over the fare disparity was a commercial discussion that should not be dragged to diplomatic row.
While declaring open the three-day public hearing, Deputy Senate President, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, said doing business should not be at the expense of Nigerian people, while advocating a return of national career, adding that if countries like Ethiopia, Kenya and South Africa could have national careers, nothing should stop Nigeria to operate a national career.
The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), on Monday, also came down on the two British carriers, accusing them of spearheading exploitation of the Nigerians passengers.
Speaking at the public hearing on violation of aviation laws and practice by foreign airlines, the NCAA Director-General, Dr Harold Demuren, said the act by the two carriers had made other foreign carriers to follow suit in the exploitation.
The development came even as British Airways, through its media consultant in Nigeria, Quadrant Company, insisted that the airline had always operated air services between Nigeria and the United Kingdom (UK) in full conformity with the Bilateral Air Service Agreement (BASA), including the tariffs article of the treaty, which covers all aspects of fares between the two countries.
A statement signed by the media assistant to the NCAA boss, Mr Sam Adurogboye, noted that the two carriers could not justify and sustain their arbitrary high fares against the Nigerian passengers, insisting that they both charged lower in regional African countries, especially in Ghana, which he said was farther and less competitive than Nigeria.
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