Democracy, simply viewed as Government of the people, for the people, and by the people, is globally acclaimed as the best form of government. Its major implication is that it offers an entirely suitable environment for the citizenry and Government to coexist peacefully and satisfactorily. However, how far this is true is dependent on different variables in different countries. As Nigeria marks her twenty-fourth Democracy Day today, The Tide’s Business Editor, Soibi Max-Alalibo, anchors reports from Senior Reporters: Lilian Peters, Corlins Walter Amadi, Tonye Nria-Dappa, King Onunwo, and Chinedu Wosu in what has turned out to be a very distinct picture of how Nigeria’s business sector has faired in the county’s Democracy in the last eight years, under the All Progressives Congress (APC), with a view to giving the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu-led Government a good idea of what is required for a better Nigeria.
The Nigeria Project has
had various twists and turns in its entirety since it started from independence in 1960. But never have these been as darring in a democratic dispensation as it has been in the last 24 years, which constitute Nigeria’s 4th Republic.
This is probably due to the fact that the two decades plus has also been the first time any democracy in the country had gone beyond the first four years uninterrupted.
All segments have also had their ups and downs often to the point of clear frustration not just to the government, but also to the citizenry, with, of course, the latter worst off.
The Aviation, Maritime, Information Communication Technology (ICT), Energy, Oil and Gas, as well as the financial sectors constitute key areas that have been affected in the last eight years.
Nigeria’s Aviation industry, for instance, has gone through many challenges over the years. Such challenges range from infrastructure, security and safety, which is a core value in the industry, according to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) standard.
Various democratically elected administrations have come onboard with policies which they deem necessary for the development and advancement of the industry, which explains why there are usually high expectations from the industry operators when a new government takes the saddle.
The coming onboard of the Mohammadu Buhari-led All Progressives Congress (APC) administration in Nigeria on May 29th, 2015, therefore, brought new hopes for many Nigerians, particularly in terms of the remodeling of the aviation industry across board.
In Rivers State, the Port Harcourt International Airport, Omagwa, was operating under canopies at the arrival wing for both domestic and international arrivals, for which many described the airport as a dirty local place that was not fit to be called an international airport.
At that time also, the international wing and the domestic wing were operating from the same terminal building, which made the terminal building to be highly congested.
Another sour taste the Buhari administration met on ground was the inefficiency at the runway of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, and the same at the Akanibiam International Airport, Enugu. In fact, almost all other international airports in the country had their story.
No doubt past administrations made some efforts in addressing the challenges, but the Buhari administration swang into action to address the challenges. One of the steps was to close the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, for three months to carry out an expansion of the runway.
According to the former Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, “the runway was causing traffic congestion, and need to be expanded to make for free flow of flights operations”.
Flights were subsequently diverted to the Kaduna Airport. To make it easier for the Kaduna Airport to be able to cope with the influx of passengers, the Federal Government had first upgraded some of its infrastructure.
Consequently, all Abuja bound passengers from Port Harcourt and those from other distant states passed through Kaduna, to access Abuja by road until normalcy was restored at the Abuja Airport, after the completion of the runway.
In October 2018, the Federal Government commenced the remodeling of the Port Harcourt Airport. The international wing terminal building was constructed by the Chinese Civil Engineering Construction Company (CCECC) and was subsequently commissioned by President Buhari.
Additionally, the administration ensured that the domestic arrival terminal wing being constructed by InterBau Construction Company, at the Port Harcourt Airport, was also delivered to remove the reproach of using tent and trampoline for operations.
Describing these achievements of the Buhari-led administration at the Port Harcourt Airport as a ‘remarkable feat’, a Forex operator, Mr Igwe Vincent, said it has brought a relief and ease to users of the airport, among others.
“The past Buhari administration achieved many things in the aviation industry in Nigeria. There are things other administrations did not accomplish, but the last administration did.
“In the first tenure of Buhari’s government, that was when some airports were remodeled, and that has brought a big relief and ease of operations at the Port Harcourt Airport, both the domestic and the international terminals.
“In the last administration, we witnessed the coming of new airlines into Port Harcourt for operations both at the domestic and international terminals, and such has created jobs for the unemployed in Rivers State and for Nigerians”, he said.
Vincent said another achievement of the Buhari administration in the aviation sector was the certification of Lagos and Abuja airports, while the process for certification is still ongoing at other airports like Port Harcourt and Kano.
According to him, the last administration “took the bull by the horn to fulfill all the international standard requirements for the certification of these airports, which was certified by International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) for Safety and Security”.
Nevertheless, the Buhari government also witnessed a lot of challenges in the aviation sector, especially in the COVID-19 era in 2020, which grounded airlines operations for many months.
Many jobs were lost, as new protocols were introduced for operations at the airports, while some business wound down for inability to cope with the order of operations.
Another challenge the administration faced was the unending scarcity of ‘jet-A1’, otherwise known as aviation fuel. The government appeared to be helpless, as it was difficult for airlines to purchase fuel, which led to hike in flight tickets, and consequently lower patronage by passengers.
Prices of flight tickets increased by 100 and 150 percent for all routes. This period was a very challenging period for both airlines and passengers, as many people stopped traveling under that situation, and airlines also couldn’t operate at ‘ Breakeven point’, specifically between November 2021 and December 2022, as air passengers drastically reduced.
Chairman of Airline Operators Committee (AOC) at the Port Harcourt Airport, Francis Ofangba, described the period as the worst so far in the history of their operations.
Ofangba in a chat with The Tide noted that airlines recorded a lot of flight cancellations due to unavailability of passengers or inability to get aviation fuel on time: “no flight will run empty under that situation, and the Federal Government could not address the matter as it were”, he said.
One major policy of the Buhari’s administration that has generated much controversy and disagreement in the aviation industry is the issue of the “National Carrier”, the “Nigerian Air”, which Domestic and indegenous airlines operators vehemently opposed.
The domestic airline operators went to court to stop the Nigerian Air operations, accusing the former Minister of Aviation, and Ministry of Aviation of conniving with a foreign airline, Ethiopian Air, to surcharge Nigerians, and that the Federal Government was not sincere with the policy, because, as they alleged, everything about the contractual agreement was shrouded in secrecy.
They approached a Federal High court in Lagos and obtained a restraining order against the certification and operations of the Nigerian Air, earlier this year, but the Minister of Aviation went on to continue with contract.
On Friday, May 26th, the Minister went on to unveil the Nigerian Air, inspite of the court order, an action many Nigerians described such as a drama.
The Chairman, Senate Committee on Aviation, Nlolim Nnaji, on Tuesday, ordered the immediate suspension of the Nigerian Air, accusing the former minister of aviation of conniving with Ethiopian Air on a secret deal, inspite of the court injunction, and sidelining the Senate.
Also, the issue of consessioning of some airports was another policy that received strong opposition: aviation worker unions vehemently opposed the policy to concession the four major airports – Lagos, Port Harcourt, Abuja, and Kano. It has been alleged, however, that the Abuja and Kano Airports have already been concessioned.
Chairman of the National Union of Air Transport Employees (NUATE), Felix Ovude, told The Tide that the position of the union was that the Federal Government should look at other airports for concessioning, and not to concession the four viable airports.
As it stands, the onus lies on the present Government of President Bola Tinubu to see how some of the errors made by the past administration in the aviation industry can be corrected.
As the call for suspension of the Nigerian Air, among others, keep raging, the President Bola Tinubu-led APC Government is required to give the matter the attention it deserves.
A major characteristic of a democracy is for a government to have the patience and ability to listen to the voice of reason, especially in key decisions that affects the people.
This is what is currently required by the Tinubu-led Federal Government to be in better stead to turn the aviation industry to a more viable sector than it had been in the last eight years.