Hadi Sirika, a former Aviation Minister, has refuted accusations that the Air Nigeria project, conceived by ex-President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration, was a scam, stressing that the initiative was born out of good intentions.
Sirika revealed this during his appearance on Channels Television’s Morning Brief on Tuesday.
He claimed the administration followed due process.
He stated, “I had no intention to speak about my time in office for now, I intend to bring up a book.
“It is a public-private partnership which was regulated by the Infrastructure Concessioning Regulatory Commission which gave certificates and participated actively in the process.
“It is a lie that I spent N100 billion and it was lost in the process. The total budget for the national carrier was N5bn; the total amount released was N3 billion, and I left the ministry with over N1 billion,” he stated.
Nigeria Air was launched at the tail end of Buhari’s administration.
Sirika has been facing trial for alleged corruption and abuse of office since leaving office in 2023.
He was suspected of awarding multibillion-naira contracts to companies owned by his family members, including his daughter Fatima Sirika and son-in-law Jalal Hammaby, according to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
He was accused of dividing a federal aviation contract worth N2.7 billion to avoid regulatory approvals and awarding it to family-owned businesses.
The EFCC also accused his daughter and son-in-law’s company, Al Buraq Global Investment Limited, of accepting N1.3 billion for an unfulfilled aviation contract.
Answering queries about whether his visit to the Presidential Villa on Tuesday was intended to secure a soft landing, he stated that the case was still pending in court and that commenting on the issue would be prejudicial.
He explained, “The purpose of the meeting was to officially pay our condolences to the president, who did extremely well after the demise of our leader, President Muhammadu Buhari.
“Also to appreciate him for what he has done and to assure him of the support of our party, for which he is our leader.
“Unfortunately, this matter is in the court of law, and it is not a matter that should be subjected to the press.
“I am a very clean man. I have worked with people. The government has every instrument at their disposal to find my character,” he added.
