Politicians spent N2.52bn on chartered flights in 10 weeks – Investigation

Indigenous chartered jet operators may have raked in at least N2.52bn in the last 10 weeks from politicians, who make use of their services to move from one campaign venue to the other as the April elections close in. Investigation by our correspondent revealed that each of the four major indigenous chartered jet operators, who had been conveying politicians to various parts of the country for electioneering, were making about $420,000 (N63m at an exchange rate of N150 to the United States dollar) every week. According to industry sources, each of the operators works for about 70 hours a week with the fee for each hour fixed at about $6,000 (N900,000). This means that each operator makes around $420,000 (N63m) weekly, while the four operators make $1.68m (N252m) weekly. Thus, the four operators may have made not less than N2.52bn in the last 10 weeks conveying politicians from their respective bases to the different campaign venues and back. The four major indigenous chartered jet operators in the country are Kings Airlines, Wings Aviation, Top Brazz Aviation and Overland Airways. However, findings showed that other airlines, including Associated Airlines, also engaged in chartered services occasionally, while some non-aviation companies, which own private jets, rent them out to their politician friends for chartered services. One of the operators, who craved anonymity, because of the sensitive nature of the matter, told our correspondent that the N2.52bn made by the chartered jet operators represented only a fragment of what came into the sub-sector since January when the election campaigns began. According to him, the business is currently dominated by foreign operators, who handle about 70 per cent of the deals coming into the sector. The operator explained, “Since January, when the campaigns really started, majority of the indigenous chartered jet operators have been working for about 70 hours every week, up from about 40 hours before the campaigns started. Averagely, an hour charter jet service goes for about $6,000. That amounts to about $420,000 weekly. “However, the most painful thing is that this amount represents only 30 per cent of the revenue coming into the business. About 70 per cent of the chartered jet business in Nigeria is dominated by foreign operators, who use foreign registered airplanes. Unfortunately, things are like that because most clients, including these politicians, prefer these foreign operators. We have been complaining to the government about the activities of these foreign operators, who use foreign registered aircraft. We said some of their operations were illegal, but the government has yet to listen.” The source added, “These foreign operators don’t pay Value Added Tax; they don’t pay some other statutory charges that we pay in the sector. Their crew don’t have labour permit to work in Nigeria and yet they work. Government needs to examine their operations closely because their operations are affecting us.” The Managing Director of an aviation and airline consultancy firm, ED Aviation, Mr. Edward Young, said that about 70 per cent of the chartered jet business in the country was being done with foreign registered planes. Young, who noted that some aspects of the foreign operators’ business were questionable, however, said that the government had yet to crack down on some illegal operators because they had been “playing smart.” He said, “You see a lot of foreigners, who come to render chartered jet service in Nigeria do so along with some local representatives. They come into the country under various guises; so it is very difficult for the government to catch them. Some of them play smart at times by saying that such aircraft are on wet-lease agreement, that is, one that requires you to borrow an aircraft along with the foreign crew. But we also know that most of those planes are carrying South Africa, United States, United Kingdom and other countries’ registration, and they are being flown by foreign pilots and crew.” By Oyetunji Abioye