Court nullifies sale of Nigeria Air stake to Ethiopian Airlines

A federal high court sitting in Lagos state has nullified the sale of 49 percent equity stake in Nigeria Air to Ethiopian Airlines.

In the ruling on Monday, Ambrose Lewis-Allagoa, the presiding judge, said the stake sold to Ethiopian Airlines is null and void after determining the issues in the suit.

Lewis-Allagoa also said the federal government’s plans to establish the national carrier, Nigeria Air, should be halted.

The judge gave the order while granting the relief sought by the plaintiffs, registered trustees of the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) and five other aviation industry stakeholders.

The five other stakeholders are Azman Air Services Limited, Air Peace Limited, Max Air Limited, United Nigeria Airlines Company Limited, and Topbrass Aviation Limited.

The defendants are Nigeria Air Limited, Ethiopian Airlines, Hadi Sirika, former minister of aviation, and Abubakar Malami, former attorney-general of the federation.

Although Lewis-Allagoa gave the judgment in favour of the plaintiffs, the request for N2 billion in damages was not granted.

The plaintiffs had sought an order to nullify the entire bidding and selection process for the Nigeria Air project, as well as the approval and selection of Ethiopian Airlines by the defendants.

The complainants raised concerns about their exclusion from the project and the flawed bidding process.

In 2023, the ministry of aviation, under Sirika, unveiled Nigeria Air — three days before the end of former President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.

The development had elicited concerns among stakeholders nationwide over the ownership arrangement, which gave Ethiopian Airlines a 49 percent equity stake.

The federal government had a 5 percent equity, while a consortium of three Nigerian investors had 46 percent.

Reacting to the deal in June 2023, the house of representatives asked the federal government to suspend the operations of Nigeria Air, describing it as ‘a fraud’.

In August 2023, Festus Keyamo, the minister of aviation, announced the national carrier project was suspended until further notice.

Providing updates on May 27, Keyamo said the Nigeria Air project remains suspended.