Domestic airlines to know fate April 25 in suit against FG

By Chinelo Obogo 

Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), will now have to wait till April 25, to know if the decision to transfer a suit challenging the process of the appointment of Ethiopian Airline as core investors and operator of proposed Nigeria Air, will proceed at the Federal High Court Abuja.

AON, the umbrella body of domestic airlines in Nigeria, had approached the court to seek it to interpret the law as it affects the process of procuring the services of Ethiopian Airlines for the operation of the proposed Nigeria Air.

Hearing in the objection brought by AON to the order to transfer the matter to the Abuja division of the Federal High Court was concluded Wednesday before Justice James Omotosho, who fixed April 25 for ruling on the matter.

Justice Omotosho further adjourned the matter to April 25 after adopting all processes filed by the AON and the defendants including the Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, and Ethiopian Airlines.

In contesting the process of appointing Ethiopian Airiness for the management of the proposed Nigeria Air, AON argued that the Ministry of Aviation ignored the legally mandatory stages of the public procurement process as stipulated in the law establishing the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC).

According to AON, the law mandated the advertisement of the appointment of an operator for the proposed airline in three national newspapers. It told the court that the federal government ignored the law by advertising only in two national newspapers and one foreign newspaper.

AON further argued that the law could be breached only in emergency situations where the National Assembly could not convene to amend it, adding that, there is no emergency in the process of appointing an operator for Nigeria Air to warrant a transgression of the law.

The AON said that despite the matter advancing towards conclusion at the Federal High Court in Lagos; it was suddenly transferred to Abuja.

It argued that there was no extraneous situation to warrant the transfer of the suit to the Abuja division of the court even after the matter had reached advanced stage with a restraining order on the Federal Government to maintain status quo pending final determination of the suit.