Femi Gbajabiamila walks Emefiele's representative out of aviation meeting

Femi Gbajabiamila, speaker of the house of representatives, on Monday, May 9, 2022, asked Kingsley Obiora, deputy governor, economic policy directorate of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), to leave a meeting with aviation stakeholders.

The leadership of the house is currently meeting with stakeholders in the aviation sector over a plan by domestic airlines to halt their services, owing to the rise in the price of aviation fuel.

Obiora, who represented Godwin Emefiele, the CBN governor, had initially told the lawmakers that his principal wasn’t available to attend the meeting.

In reaction, Gbajabiamila said Obiora should take his leave and inform Emefiele that “there is nothing that can be as important as this right now”.

About 30 minutes after the CBN deputy governor was asked to leave, Emefiele walked into the hall and joined the meeting.

39 days after denying presidential ambition, the CBN governor has started making political moves towards the 2023 election. His aspiration has attracted many opinions and concerns, one of which being his ability to effectively perform his appointed duties while chasing his presidential ambition.

On Friday, May 6, 2022, the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) announced plans to shut down operations from Monday over the high cost of aviation fuel.

The group complained that aviation fuel, also known as Jet A1, has reached an all-time high of N700 per litre.

The statement was jointly signed by Abdulmunaf Yunusa Sarina, president of the group; Shehu Wada, executive director, Max Air; Mfon Udom, CEO, Ibom Air; Abdullahi Mahmood, CEO, Aero Contractors; Edward Boyo, CEO, Overland Airways; Allen Onyema, chairman, Air Peace; Obiora Okonkwo, chairman, United Nigeria Airlines; Roy Ilegbodu, CEO, Arik Air; Faisal Abdulmunaf, MD, AzmanAir; and Sukh Mann, deputy CEO, Dana Air.

But on Saturday, May 7, 2022, Ibom Air pulled out of the planned action, noting that suspending flights would make a bad situation worse.

Subsequently, three more airlines — Arik Air Limited, Dana Air and Aero Contractors — also said they would continue operations but added that they support the efforts by the AON to address the fuel price hike.

The meeting between the house of representatives leadership and the aviation stakeholders is aimed at finding a solution to the issue.