More Bullet-Proof Cars, Please

This is surely not the
best of times for the Minister of Aviation, Ms Stella Oduah. Not with the recent plane crashes and near crashes, the accusations of her incompetence and the current controversy over the purchase of four BMW bullet-proof cars for her at the whooping sum of N255 million by the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), an agency under her supervision.
But what was the Minister thinking when she allowed the purchase of such cars at such exorbitant price for her personal security and safety when the safety of millions of travellers flying the nation’s air space cannot be guaranteed majorly for financial reasons, when NCAA is said to be cash-strapped and unable to carry out trainings of its technical staff both in the country and abroad. When inspectors no longer go for aircraft inspection for airlines who want to bring aircraft into the country because accounts of the agencies concerned are in the red.
You know, it is so baffling how public funds are wasted in this country by those in authority. In a country where the average individual lives on less than $1 a day, billions of Naira are spent on automobiles for the leaders. A Minister, a Commissioner, local government Chairman own fleets of exotic cars bought and maintained with the people’s money. NCAA and her sister agency, – the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), were some months ago alleged to have bought 750 vehicles for their top officials and the Aviation Minister. Qualify the fleets of cars of some governors and some top government functionaries and you will discover that N255 million for the four armoured cars shouldn’t be a big deal.
That is outside the cost of private jets owned by the same individuals. Nigeria is today rated by international experts as second on the list of countries currently buying private jets, after China. Governors, top politicians, Ministers, pastors, business moguls, even ex-militants now crave for private jets. That explains the recently released 2013 National Civil Aviation policy, which revealed that by 2020, Nigerians will acquire about 420 private jets, which will add to the 80 currently in operation.
Industry experts have estimated that the additional 420 private jets will cost not less than $15.3billion (N2.4 trn). They said the price of the various types of private jets being currently flown by Nigerians in the country ranged from $8m to $65million A Punch Newspaper reports yesterday revealed that there are 10 aircraft in the Presidential Air Fleet (PAF) estimated at $390.5million (N60.53bn), making Nigeria one of the few countries in the world with a large PAF.
Ironically, while dozens of Nigerians are spending millions of dollars on private jets and fleets of cars, the poverty level in the oil-rich country is continually on the rise.
The gap between the rich and the poor continues to widen everyday. Nigerian university students have been out of school for almost four months now as the federal government claims there is no money to implement agreement reached with the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) in 2009. I wonder who will believe the government’s story going by the way money is being wasted in this country.
Yes, the alleged abuse of office by the Aviation Minister is condemnable. I encourage anti- graft agencies to investigate that matter and prosecute anyone found culpable.
However,the investigation should not end with the Aviation Ministry.
Other Ministries, Agencies and Departments should also be investigated. Federal lawmakers should not be left out.
The truth is that there is endemic corruption in this country which calls for thorough sanitisation of the entire system.
A situation where contracts are inflated like the case of the armoured vehicles where N255million  was spent on four cars which market value is estimated at N36million each;  where monies meant for developmental projects are embezzled by a few privileged  individuals while the poor masses suffer in penury will take the country nowhere. As someone posted via the social media, unless the affairs of the poor masses are given the desired  attention, Ministers and other government functionaries would not only start buying bullet-proof cars but bullet-proof yachts, jets and live in bullet-proof houses as there will be no safe place for them.

Calista Ezeaku