Kaduna State Governor, Mallam Nasir El-
Rufai has called on the federal government to adopt policies geared
towards boosting the growth of indigenous airlines.
Specifically, the governor said such
policies should be favourable to the local operators by reducing heavy
financial burden on them and enabling them to operate profitably.
He noted that the aviation sector is a key aspect of the transportation system that requires all the support of government
El-Rufai made the call at the weekend
during an inspection tour of Arik Air facilities at the Murtala Muhammed
International Airport (MMIA) Lagos.
The governor said he was in Arik to thank the management for operating in Kaduna state and to request that the airline increases its flights frequency to the state.
He said the state has a huge traffic as
many businessmen and government officials are always stranded because of
non-availability of enough flights connecting people from the state to
other parts of the country, adding that his administration was trying to
improve the business environment that would lead to creation of more
jobs for the state.
“Transportation is important. The
federal government is aware of that and we need to all advocate for the
creation of appropriate policy environment for the growth of the
transportation industry and aviation is a key part of that inter- modal
system of transportation. The government is aware and it would do the
right thing,” El-Rufai said.
The governor, who expressed satisfaction
with the facilities at Arik, said: “I did not know that things were
very organised like this. It is giving a bit of confidence that when I
am flying Arik, I’m in good hands.”
Deputy Managing Director of Arik Air,
Capt. Ado Sanusi, who received the governor, promised that the airline
would soon increase the number of flight on the Kaduna route.
He said the challenge facing the
airlines was infrastructural decay at most of the airports and urged
government to provide landing aids to enable flights operate in the
night to some airports, including Kaduna.
Sanusi said the aim of Arik was to
connect every part of the country by providing efficient, safe and
effective flight connections across the airports, adding that the
airline was dedicated to serving Nigeria and Nigerians.
With over 100 flights a day on the
domestic routes and many operations on the West and Central Africa along
with flights to international destinations, Sanusi said Arik Air is
contributing significantly to the development of the country as a
national flag carrier.
