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Hadi Sirika: Allen Onyema says Minister allegedly lied to praise his partners, Ethiopian Air

Nigeria Air: Why Nigeria doesn't need a national carrier – Allen Onyema

Founder Air Peace Nigeria Allen Onyema (Image credit: Allen Onyema’s Instagram account)


The Founder and Chief Executive of Air Peace Nigeria, Allen Onyema, in a recent interview with Arise TV, strongly denied the allegations made by former Aviation Minister, Hadi Sirika, regarding the leasing of Boeing-777s by Air Peace.

In an interview with Arise TV, Onyema alleged that it was the Minister himself who approved the import application for the aircraft, and each application clearly states whether the aircraft is for lease or rent. He accused the Minister of spreading false information to commend his Ethiopian Air partners.

In a separate interview, Hadi Sirika alleged that Air Peace was leasing two Boeing 777 aircraft every month for $250,000, resulting in significant financial losses of $19 million as the aircraft remained parked for several months.

Peddling Falsehood

Onyema stated that he is not here to fight a battle with the ex-Minister, adding it is not in his DNA to pick fights, he added:

Aircraft Fleet

He noted that Air Peace does not own 2 Boeing-777s, revealing that they own 3 that were purchased, 2 were ex emirates and 1 ex Singapore, adding:

Minister orders

He also added that no aircraft enters Nigeria without the approval of the minister, so he did all that and knew quite well that those planes were not rented, he said:

Backstory

During his interview, Hadi Sirika alleged that Air Peace leased two Boeing 777 aircraft every month for $250,000, parked the aircraft for several months, and incurred losses of $19 million.

He added that the aircraft engines and landing gears became due for replacement when it was ready to fly.

But Air Peace described the claim as a “blatant lie,” saying that the airline had three B777 aircraft as against two alleged by Sirika.

The airline insisted that it never leased or rented the aircraft, but purchased them outrightly. In the same vein, the company denied that it incurred any losses as claimed by Sirika, challenging him to make enquiries from the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority(NCAA) on the purchase and ownership of the aircraft. Part of a statement by the company said:

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