Hadi Sirika
The Federal Government of Nigeria has threatened to sanction foreign airlines in the country over their refusal to accept naira payment for flight tickets.
The Minister of Aviation, Mr Hadi Sirika, made this known at a briefing on Wednesday 7th September after the Federal Executive Council meeting chaired by President Muhammadu Buhari.
He said intelligence reports indicated that some of the airlines refuse to sell in naira but charge ticket fares in dollars instead, in violation of Nigerian laws.
The minister disclosed that the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority has been directed to deal with any of such airlines that are caught flouting the laws.
Sirika cautioned them to refrain from using the social media to place their demands rather than resorting to the diplomatic channels.
According to him, foreign airlines have made over 1.1 billion dollars so far from Nigeria since 2016, an amount which could have remained in the country if they were local airlines.
He further disclosed that the airlines remitted over 600 million dollars to their home countries in 2016, while over 265 million dollars has also been released this year.
