I received with mixed feelings the news that Nigeria Air would finally hit the skylines soon. As a patriot, I’m excited to see a ‘national carrier’ back, after so many years of quandary on reviving the airline.
As a grateful heart, thanks to the current administration for even thinking about it and pushing the cause, despite the plethora of odds. However, I feel ashamed for the same Nigerian government for offering 49 per cent of the stakes of the ‘national carrier’ to Ethiopian Airways.
By this, the carrier would actually be run according to the terms of the Ethiopian government. Ethiopian Airlines is wholly owned by the government of Ethiopia.
Ethiopian Airways is a well run airline, the best in Africa and a shining member of the Star Alliance. There is no doubt that, like ASky, Ethiopian Airlines management will run a ‘Nigerian Air’ beautifully. But there are reservations.
So the talking point is that, Nigeria is handing over its huge aviation market to Ethiopia, a country that makes $5b annually already, by its national airline.
This implies that Nigeria Air would be an Ethiopian company and most of the income of the organisation would go to Addis Ababa. Nigeria would be building the Ethiopian economy at the expense of Nigeria because of this arrangement.
The moral question is, what can the Nigerian government fix or manage all by itself? Roads can’t be built promptly or well; hospitals do not function; universities are perpetually shut; oil refineries can’t work; the national grid always collapses and government can’t fix power; elections can’t be conducted properly; even independence days can’t be well organised?
What can our government do well? Nothing!!! Those in government should be ashamed of themselves that they are asking a poorer and fellow African country to manage its national carrier.
This is how South Africa came to show us how to run a 21st Century cable television (DSTV and GoTV), mobile network (MTN), and how to organise a Walmart-like shopping centre (ShopRite). We can’t even play good football anymore. The national teams of Nigeria are, in the last three years, the whipping boys in Africa and the world.
What can we as Nigeria and Nigerians do by ourselves that will justify our self-acclaimed Giant of Africa appellation? Music? Movies? Comedy skits? Jollof rice? Or is it garri and beans?
We do these ones quite well, but we need South Africa’s cable television and America’s YouTube and other countries’ inventions and good management skills to sell our trades.
If this (and future) government can simply and patriotically deal with corruption once and for all and stop the incessant and reckless sharing of our national resources amongst licensed thieves, create an enabling environment such as good policy and sustainable infrastructure, and appoint qualified personnel to manage our assets, including Nigeria Air, we will surely not need Ethiopia and the likes to run (and exploit) our country.
•Folarin is a Texas, US-based Nigerian professor of International Relations.
