By Temidayo Akinsuyi

When Festus Keyamo (SAN) was appointed as the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development by President Bola Tinubu, many Nigerians criticised the appointment, describing it as a misplaced one.

They argued that the president ought to have appointed an aeronautical engineer or expert because, as a lawyer, Keyamo possesses little or no knowledge about the aviation industry. On the contrary, Keyamo dismissed the fears, saying his appointment was not a coincidence but a deliberate and strategic decision made by the president.

The fears of these Nigerians are indeed justified given what transpired under the immediate past administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari. The majority of the ministers are square pegs in round holes who have no clue about what governance is all about. Despite criticisms from many Nigerians, including the then First Lady, Aisha Buhari, the former president never fired any of the ministers but only dropped some of them from returning to the cabinet after his inauguration for a second term.

During that period, Keyamo was appointed, first as Minister of State for Niger Delta Affairs.

A few weeks later, he was redeployed to the Ministry of Labour and Productivity in the same capacity. Known for his frankness and forthrightness, Keyamo, in a speech delivered at the valedictory session of the Buhari administration in May 2023, described the appointment of the Minister of State as an aberration.

Though he thanked Buhari for giving him the appointment that enhanced his CV, Keyamo said it would be difficult to assess the individual performances of the Ministers of State since their discretion was shackled under the discretion of the Ministers, as any original ideas developed by a Minister of State are subject to clearance by another colleague in Cabinet before they can sail through for consideration by Council.

“What I am about to say, therefore, is not and should not be construed as an indication of ingratitude. Far from it. What I am about to say is just my own little contribution to our constitutional development as a relatively young democracy and to aid future governments in optimising the performance of those they appoint as ministers.

“Mr. President, the concept or designation of “Minister of State” is a constitutional aberration and is practically not working for many so appointed. Successive governments have come and gone, and many who were appointed as Ministers of State have not spoken out at a forum such as this because of the risk of sounding ungrateful to the presidents who appointed them. However, like I said earlier, this is not ingratitude.”.

Keyamo said, “For me, my watchword is transparency. At every point, the Nigerian people must understand what we are doing and carry everyone along so that we don’t have some of the complaints we had in the past. We are serving the Nigerian people. Everything I do has always been to satisfy the Nigerian people.

“We are going to move from very complex issues to simple issues that every Nigerian faces and the complaints they have. They may not know the work we are doing behind the scenes in terms of safety, but usually, people appreciate what they see every day, like the cleanliness of the environment and how early they get their flights, among others.

“At every point in time, we must put the people first. I intend to start getting briefings from the directors first, then agencies, starting tomorrow. The Permanent Secretary should draw a schedule for the briefings,” he stated.

Since managing the aviation ministry, Keyamo has proven that with the right attitude and effective leadership orientation [U1],, civil servants or government workers can deliver to optimal capacity and rival their counterparts in the private sector. Speaking during an induction training of Aviation Chief Executive Officers and the signing of the performance bond in Abuja, Keyamo sounded a note of warning to heads of agencies who are nurturing plans to loot public funds budgeted for the development of the sector to immediately resign from their positions. While urging them to completely shun involvement in corrupt activities, Keyamo also urged them to carry out their duties to the best of their abilities, adding that some of the key performance indicators of the ministry include ensuring strict compliance with safety regulations, supporting the growth of local airlines and operators, developing human capacity within the aviation industry, and generating revenue for the Federal Government, amongst others. This obviously sent a signal to the staff in the aviation sector that “a new sheriff is in town and it won’t be business as usual again.”.

One of the major issues in the aviation sector that was left hanging before the expiration of the Buhari administration was the issue of Nigeria Air, which was badly superintended by Keyamo’s predecessor, Hadi Sirika. Prof. Itse Sagay (SAN), former chairman of the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption (PACAC), recently revealed that Sirika entered into an agreement with Ethiopian Airlines to use Boeing 747 Max, known for its deadly crashes, for the project. Keyamo, after reviewing the details of the deal, announced that the Nigeria Air project will be suspended until President Tinubu is properly briefed and the allegedly non-transparent processes are reviewed.

In line with international best practices in the aviation sector, Keyamo also ordered the relocation of all airlines from the old to the new Murtala Muhammed International Airport terminal in Lagos. While justifying his action, the minister said it is a complete disgrace to the country as a whole to continue the use of the old terminal, which has become an eyesore, while the new terminal remains under-utilised.

“We have 60 check-in counters in the new terminal, and most are not in use. Why are we struggling with the old terminal that is smelly, leaking, and a complete disgrace to our country? That is why I said we should use the new facility. Just like it’s done in so many countries, we are going to do some emergency procurement and get buses so that we can, in an orderly manner, board passengers, disembark them, and also bring them tothe aircraft for arrival and departure. We would do this as a temporal measure.”

The minister also won the hearts of Nigerians again, with full support given to local airline operators who intend to fly international routes. Prior to now, foreign airlines, in collusion with corrupt government officials, usually frustrate local airline operators with bureaucratic bottlenecks that cripple their businesses and leave Nigerians at the mercy of the foreign airlines that sell tickets in foreign currencies. It was a huge relief recently when over 260 passengers travelled with Nigeria’s major carrier, Air Peace, on its inaugural flight from Lagos to London, seven years after the last indigenous airline, Medview, operated the route. The appreciative passengers were served local delicacies during the 6-hour flight, and they were impressed with the hospitality given to them by the flight crew.

Keyamo noted that the Air Peace flight to London has forced foreign airlines to bring down fares and made the cost of tickets very competitive. He said the goal of President Bola Tinubu’s administration is to give full support to the Nigerian carriers to operate international destinations profitably and to help them acquire aircraft on dry lease and also pay less for aircraft insurance.

While the price slash by the foreign airlines has continued to elicit excitement from Nigeians, Allen Onyema, chief executive officer (CEO) of Air Peace, raised the alarm that there is a conspiracy by the foreign airlines to take his company out of business by underpricing the flight tickets for the Lagos-London route.

Responding to this, Keyamo said, “The first thing is for Nigerians to fully patronise not only Air Peace but all indigenous airlines on international routes. Before the federal government does anything, let Nigerians patronise him and know that this is our indigenous airline.”.

To whom much is given, much is expected. Keyamo has proven his critics wrong with his appointment as Minister of Aviation. There are many aeronautical experts in the ministry, and all they need is the right attitude to work and an effective minister to marshal the plans. The role of the minister is to oversee air transportation, airport development and maintenance, the provision of aviation infrastructure services, and other needs. Keyamo has justified President Tinubu’s confidence in his ability to deliver to the admiration of Nigerians. He must not rest on his oars.

Akinsuyi, former Group Politics Editor of Daily Independent, writes from Abuja
https://www.vanguardngr.com/2024/04/aviation-ministry-keyamo-has-proven-his-critics-wrong/#:~:text=Keyamo%20has%20proven%20his%20critics%20wrong%20with%20his%20appointment%20as,minister%20to%20marshal%20the%20plans.

And who are these so-called critics he proved wrong?

A Wazobia achievement. Congrats to one Nigeria.

We can achieve much more if we put selfishness and tribal bigotry aside.

Well done Festus for the Air Peace deal. encourage and support more local airlines

Toh

If Tinubu appoint me as Minister today, I will perform. The experts and consultants are there. My job is to coordinate them

nairavsdollars:
If Tinubu appoint me as Minister today, I will perform. The experts and consultants are there. My job is to coordinate them

Why not start as a councilor from your home state?

Dash me money to contest nah. U think say politucs na moi-moi

helinues:


Why not start as a councilor from your home state?

nairavsdollars:
Dash me money to contest nah. U think say politucs na moi-moi

So you are waiting for someone to dash you money to contest, it means you won't be different from out current politicians as those who might have dashed you money to contest would demand something more than you can afford

Even Peter Obi your friend relied on donation. Election no easy

helinues:




So you are waiting for someone to dash you money to contest, it means you won't be different from out current politicians as those who might have dashed you money to contest would demand something more than you can afford

nairavsdollars:
Even Peter Obi your friend relied on donation. Election no easy

As long as you are relying on donations, then forget about performing