Former Aviation Minister Hadi Sirika has denied spending N100 billion on the failed Nigeria Air project while in office.
Sirika said that contrary to “lies” about misappropriating funds for the project, only about N3 billion out of the total N5 billion budgeted was released.
Nigeria Air was initiated under the late former President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration to serve as a national carrier for the country.
Since leaving office, Sirika has faced persistent criticism, with claims that he embezzled billions meant to execute the project. He is also currently facing legal proceedings for alleged corruption and abuse of office.
Dismissing the allegations, the former minister insisted that Buhari’s administration followed due process in its attempt to execute the project.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Morning Brief, Sirika said: “It is a public-private partnership which was regulated by the Infrastructure Concessioning Regulatory Commission, ICRC, which gave certificates and participated actively in the process.
“It is a lie that I spent N100 billion, and it was lost in the process. The total budget for the national carrier was N5 billion, the total amount released was N3 billion, and I left the ministry with over N1 billion.”
