FG to sanction foreign airlines over  ticket fares in dollars

…Foreign airlines remitted over $600m to home countries in 2016 — Sirika

…Says $1.1bn was made from Nigeria in six years

By Uthman Salami & Seun Ibiyemi

The Federal government has announced its readiness to sanction any foreign Airlines charging flight ticket in US Dollars.

This is just as the government also revealed that $1.1 billion was made from Nigeria since 2016 while over $600 million has been remitted to the home country of these foreign Airlines

The Federal government through the Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika made this disclosure while directing the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) to sanction any international airlines selling their flight tickets with the United States Dollar while refusing the naira.

Hadi Sirika, the Minister of Aviation has said that the Federal Government will sanction foreign airlines that refuse to sell air tickets in Naira, Nigeria’s local currency.

He said this today in Abuja shortly after the Federal Executive Council meeting, according to ChannelsTV.

He revealed that intelligence reports have shown that some airlines now charge for tickets in dollars, an act that violates Nigeria’s laws.

“Refusing to sell tickets in Naira, and blocking access to cheaper seats, are violations of our local laws. We will not allow it, all violators will be sanctioned,” the minister said.

Speaking on foreign airlines’ trapped funds, he said the CBN is working to ensure that airline funds are not trapped.

“We are doing everything to make these airlines happy in Nigeria. We need their services; they need our market,” he added.

Recall that some airline operators had announced in August that they were suspending flight operations to Nigeria as a result of the difficulty to repatriate their funds.

Emirates Airlines earlier announced the suspension of its flight operations to Nigeria, starting September 1, 2022, over its $85 million revenue awaiting repatriation from Nigeria.

In its quest to douse apprehension of more foreign Airlines suspending operations, the Central Bank of Nigeria released the sum of $265 million in order to settle trapped funds belonging to foreign airlines.

But at the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja yesterday.

Sirika said intelligence reports indicated that some of the airlines are refusing naira and charging their ticket fares in dollars in violation of the country’s laws, adding that NCAA had been mandated to deal with any of such airlines wilfully breaching the laws.

He stated some of the airlines have also blocked local travel agencies from accessing their websites for transactions.

He said the foreign airlines had made over $1.1 billion from Nigeria from 2016, which could have been retained in the country if they were local airlines.

The Minister said the airlines remitted over $600 million to their home countries in 2016 while over $265 million had also been released this year out of about $484 million due to them.

According to Sirika, the government is trying to keep the airlines happy by ensuring that their monies do not heap again, stating that while the country needs their services, the airlines need the Nigerian market.

Sirika also cautioned them to refrain from using the social media to press home their demands but to rather use the diplomatic channels.