The House of Representatives Committee on Aviation has decided to postpone its investigative hearing regarding the contentious launch of Air Nigeria, the national carrier, under the previous administration led by Muhammadu Buhari.

Initially, the committee had called upon key stakeholders to attend the hearing, which was originally planned to take place on Monday in Abuja.

Unfortunately, many representatives from these stakeholders had already departed from the venue by the time the committee’s Chairman, Nnolim Nnaji, arrived, which was approximately two hours later than scheduled.

The committee had extended invitations to various stakeholders, such as the Ministry of Aviation, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Justice, Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission, Airline Operators of Nigeria, Ethiopian Airlines, and aviation fuel (Jet-A1) suppliers.

Upon Nnolim Nnaji’s belated arrival, he expressed apologies to the stakeholders who had patiently remained at the venue. He requested that the hearing be rescheduled for 3pm on Tuesday (today).

During the Buhari administration’s eight-year tenure, the launch of Nigeria Air, the national carrier, faced significant controversy, ultimately resulting in the administration’s inability to successfully establish the airline.

The Federal Government had excluded domestic airlines, represented by the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), and instead forged an agreement with Ethiopian Airlines to establish the Nigerian carrier.

As a result, the AON took legal action against the government and its affiliated entities, seeking a court injunction to halt the ongoing process.

According to a report, the Federal Government received the first aircraft for Nigeria Air, the national carrier, on Friday which occurred towards the end of the administration, leading to protests from local operators who claimed it went against a court order prohibiting the government from further progressing with the project.

Simultaneously, the House of Representatives has issued summons to Governor Godwin Emefiele of the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Auditor General for the Federation, and the Accountant General of the Federation.

The summonses were in relation to a payment of N32.5 billion made to two companies, namely Messrs GSCL Consulting and Biz Plus, without proper documentation or formal records.

In addition, the House of Representatives has also called upon the Managing Directors/Chief Executive Officers of various oil companies, such as Exxon Mobil and Nigeria Agip Oil Company, to appear before them.

The summons were issued by the House’s Ad Hoc Committee, which is responsible for investigating the alleged loss of over $2.4 billion in revenue resulting from the illicit sale of 48 million barrels of crude oil exports in 2015.

The committee’s investigation encompasses all crude oil exports and sales conducted by Nigeria from 2014 until the present day. The summonses were issued during the committee’s ongoing investigative hearing in Abuja on Monday.

During the committee’s proceedings, the Director-General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, Bashir Jamoh, faced questioning from lawmakers.

He revealed to the committee that the Federal Government had not yet claimed a judgment debt of approximately $1.7 billion from a company that was found guilty of providing false information regarding the crude oil it received from Nigeria.

However, during the discussions, it was noted that committee records indicated that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) made payments of N16.5 billion each to two companies on the same day.

Additionally, it was revealed that these funds were withdrawn by the companies within a two-month period.

The committee chairman emphasized the importance of the CBN providing an explanation regarding these payments to the firms, especially considering that the Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, had previously denied any knowledge of the payment.

Gbillah emphasized that it is the obligation of all agencies, officials, and companies summoned by the committee to comply with the summons.

He highlighted that even though the 9th House is nearing the end of its term, it retains the authority to issue a bench warrant for their arrest if necessary.

Following the committee’s proceedings, Jamoh informed journalists that NIMASA is continuing to pursue the case in court.

He said, “In 2013 when the revenue profile was low, NIMASA was directed from the Attorney-General’s office to coordinate two technical teams to source data on the actual lifting of crude oil and the last destination point to see if there are any discrepancies.