The Federal Government has approved the sum of N4 billion as bailout funds for airlines to curtail the effects of COVID-19 on the aviation sector in Nigeria.
The Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, made this known during the senate committee meeting on aviation held on Monday.
Sirikia said that the aviation sector is key to the development of any country in the world.
He also told the lawmakers that most of the airlines are having challenges paying workers’ salaries.
However, Senator Smart Adeyemi, chairman of the aviation committee, kicked against the bailout, adding that it was very little to go round airlines.
Adeyemi urged that more funds should be awarded to the sector stating that the federal government must offer assistance to the airlines.
“The N4 billion is very little to solve some of the problems of the airlines who are battling to survive.
“We urge the government to take charge of the sector.
“They need to give them more and they also need to support in all ways.
“The airlines are in business but we cannot continue to look at them without offering them assistance.
”I am not comparing Nigeria with the United States, but I think we can do better than the N4 billion we are assisting them with,” he said.
