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“Let us listen to one of the old-time potentates, Caliph Abu Djasar, who was ruler of the mighty Arabian Empire in the 8th Century. “My throne,” he said, “rests on four pillars and my rule on four persons, a blameless Cadi (Chief Justice), an energetic Chief of Police, an honest Minister of Finance and a faithful Postmaster, who gives me true information about everything.”
(See Laurin Zillacus, from Pillar To Post: The Troubled History of Mail, Heinemann, London 1956 pp. 23)
From its historic mythologies to its apogee, consummating the romantic era of the Queen of Sheba to the modern period, Ethiopian institutions and departments at one time or the other have been raped, debauched by an interfering monarchy, or by a corrupt pretending democracy, or indeed by an offensive military dictatorship.
While Ethiopia suffered variously from those powerful authorities, the country has, however, from independence, been spared from any form of government interference in the operations of two very special departments. In Ethiopia, the postal service is not run by the government of Ethiopia. Secondly, the government, whether it is a monarchy, military government or a civilian, does not interfere with the Ethiopia Airlines operations.
No wonder the two are managed by independent organisations and until the advent of the Internet the postal service of that country was the best in the continent. Say it loud, the Ethiopia Airlines might as well have been the best airline in the world. In the preceding decades that airline had been rated the second best airline to the German Lufthansa before the Middle East and the Asian mesmerising birds flew into the arena.
Recently, on a Sunday regular flight from Addis Ababa to Nairobi, an Ethiopian Airlines flight, six minutes after takeoff, came down in a furious crash. In a twinkle, 149 passengers and the immaculate crew of that Ethiopian flight were roasted on hitting the ground. Beyond the inconsolable wailings of the next of kin, friends, and colleagues of the victims, beyond that black smoldering debris, a proud history and an inimitable pedigree of a classic airline built over the years was wiped out in seconds.
Now Ethiopian Airlines, like the Indonesian Airlines flight, which in October killed all its passengers and crew in a similar crash involving the Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft, may not recover too soon from the shock and the consequent tremendous market losses following that crash.
Like Nigerian pilots, Ethiopian pilots are top of world but, unlike the Nigerian Airways, the Ethiopian management is comparable to any other airline in the top five in the world. Africa is wailing, tearing up at this time in solidarity with their sister airline, because their losses are our Gethsemane. The world’s top airlines, like Ethiopian Airlines, have standards; not only do we always count on Ethiopian Airlines’ standards and world-rated hospitality, there is no other airline in Africa that flies and lands in those remote African capitals that others shun.
The Ethiopian Airlines flying costs are most of the time cheaper and ready to serve you any beverage of guava, orange, apple, etc, of your choice, if only you would behold the bewitching smiles of the Sheba hostesses!
Boeing should immediately ground their new monsters and stop further deliveries until the whole investigations of all the concerned nations publish their findings.
Sack the cj
From day one his mien was very suspicious and up till date his name continues to twist my tongue.
After taking the nation for a ride, he threw in the towel opting to resign as the first Nigerian Chief Justice to resign after being cornered by corrupt antecedents. Next Edition we go in full details to analyze the ugly situation for now that truth is out we ask the President to reject his “soft landing” option. This CJ who is a farmer away from his Itigidi province should face the fire he stoked. Mr. President, sack the CJ. Go ahead retrieve everything he appropriated to himself illegally.
