By Oluwasore Alabi
Former Aviation Minister Femi Fani-Kayode has absolved ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo of responsibility for the liquidation of Nigeria Airways, arguing that the airline had already been crippled by corruption and mismanagement long before Obasanjo’s return to power in 1999.
Fani-Kayode, who held the aviation portfolio in 2006, said the decision to shut down the national carrier in 2004 was unavoidable, as the company had lost nearly all its assets and was operating without a functional aircraft.
His remarks followed Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development Festus Keyamo’s criticism of former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, who served under Obasanjo. Keyamo accused Atiku of hypocrisy, noting that the administration he was part of left thousands of Nigeria Airways workers jobless and unpaid after the liquidation.
While Keyamo highlighted President Bola Tinubu’s recent approval of N36 billion to settle outstanding entitlements, Fani-Kayode stressed that Obasanjo inherited a “mess” rather than created one. He recalled that Nigeria Airways had 32 aircraft and strong management when Obasanjo left office as military Head of State in 1979, but by 1999 only one grounded plane remained.
According to him, successive boards between 1979 and 1999 drained the airline through corruption and poor leadership. He said Obasanjo’s administration refused to continue funding a collapsed enterprise, though the decision sparked years of pension disputes.
Fani-Kayode noted that efforts to pay workers’ entitlements began under President Umaru Yar’Adua and continued under Muhammadu Buhari, before Tinubu’s government finally cleared the remaining obligations. He praised Keyamo for ensuring the payments were completed, describing the move as “the right thing to do” after years of suffering by former employees.
He added that cabinet members at the time collectively bore responsibility for the liquidation decision, but maintained that Obasanjo acted in the nation’s best interest.
