Premium Times is reporting that the Federal Government, through the Assets Management Company of Nigeria (AMCON), has taken over Arik Air.
The report quotes AMCON’s Head of Corporate Communications, Jude Nwauzor, as saying that the move was made to ensure that the airline “goes back to regular and undisrupted operations.” The AMCON spokesman also referred to the need to save the jobs of the airline’s staff, protect the investments of its stakeholders, and “ensure safety and stability in the already challenged aviation sector” as reasons for its intervention.
Nigeria’s aviation industry has been hit by the country’s economic recession. Airlines have recorded financial losses owing to higher fuel costs and lower patronage. Arik Air has had its fair share of the troubles that have beset the sector; it has recently struggled with flight delay issues, and a strike embarked upon by its staff over the airline’s inability to pay seven-month salary arrears.
The Premium Times report suggests that Oluseye Opasanya, a senior advocate of Nigeria, has been appointed as receiver; Roy Ilegbodu, an aviation expert, will manage the airline under the new arrangement.
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