The All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain in Akwa Ibom State, Obong Akanimo Udofia, has challenged the state government to address Ibom Air ownership, funding and profitability.
This is as he accused the Akwa Ibom State Government of lying about how Ibom Air, a commercial airline owned by the state government, was conceived.
An entrepreneur and oil and gas magnate, he was recently sacked by a Federal High Court, Uyo, as the supposed APC governorship candidate in Akwa Ibom State. The court also barred him from taking part in a fresh primary.
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In a statement issued on Tuesday, November 22 by his campaign organisation, Mr Udofia said he conceived the idea of Ibom Air in 2012, shared it with the then Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Godswill Akpabio, whom he claimed incorporated the airline on February 21, 2013.
Imo E. Akpan, a senior lawyer with the Akanimo Udofia Campaign Council, is busy striking the Udom administration on behalf of their principal.
According to him, “Udofia did not lay claim to ownership of Ibom Airlines or any aircraft in its fleet.
“There is no evidence anywhere that such a claim was made. The video referred to clearly does not make that claim so it is embarrassing to accuse our principal of wrongdoing.
“For the avoidance of doubt, the idea of Ibom Airlines Limited, was not conceived by Governor Udom Emmanuel contrary to what Uko Udom, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and the Attorney General & Commissioner for Justice, want the world to believe when he said; “the idea of Ibom Air was conceived and executed by Governor Udom Emmanuel”.
“In his poorly cobbled piece, Udom, SAN, strenuously albeit unsuccessfully sought to obfuscate facts by peddling falsehood against our principal and foremost entrepreneur, Akanimo Udofia.”
Continuing, he said, “the mendacious piece, which is riddled with inexcusable ignorance, alleged in the main, that our principal claimed ownership of Ibom Airlines and some of the aircraft in its fleet.
“We consider it worthless joining issues with idle and visionless appointees of government, but for our commitment to continually further the ideals of truth and responsibility and to deepen the conversation around the state of our government/governance, we wish to state the following facts for the benefit of our compatriots and supporters.”
Udofia legal aide fired, “Nothing could be farther from the truth as records show that Ibom airlines Limited was incoporated on February 21,2013 by Governor Godswill Akpabio after our principal shared the idea of an airline with him sometime in 2012. In 2013, Udom was still a staff of Zenith Bank and cannot ascribe to himself the conceptualization of Ibom Airlines.
“Akpabio, the man hailed as the “uncommon transformer, thereafter visited the Bombardier facility in Toulouse in France to further explore the possibility of giving life to our principal’s vision.
“The fact is, Ibom Airlines Limited that Udom Emmanuel inherited as Governor in 2015 was our principal’s brainchild!
“In fact, in furtherance of the “shared vision”, Akpabio then sponsored 32 Akwa Ibom indigenes for training in Air Traffic Control (ATC) in various institutions abroad. These graduates are today working in several airports in Nigeria.
“Akan Udofia then trained the first female pilot of Akwa Ibom descent. Our principal from 2019 went on to play a key role in liaising with Aviation authorities to secure Air Traffic Control (ATC) status for Obong Attah International Airport.
“This has culminated in our state being the hub for ATC in Nigeria today.
“Udom stood truth on its head when he claimed “…the Airline is owned 100% by Akwa Ibom State”. Ibom Airlines Limited is not owned by Akwa Ibom State (Government) and is incapable of being “owned” in a legal sense.
“For the purpose of enlightenment, Ibom Airlines Limited is a limited liability company and therefore a juristic person. The SAN ought to appreciate this fine piece of jurisprudence.
Hitting hard on the chief law officer of the state, the APC stalwart pointed out that while Udom’s piece of poorly assembled literature failed to prove any wrongdoing against the disputed governorship candidate, it allegedly inadvertently magnified the relationship of Uko Udom, Mfon Udom and Governor Udom Emmanuel in the light of their recent and strategic repositioning of the corporate governance structure in the airline.
Adding, APC said, “Udofia’s aspiration to the governorship of Akwa Ibom is predicated on his commitment to entrenching his vision of “shared prosperity” and development for the people of our beloved state.
“What he deserves is commendation and not condemnation and deliberate fabrication of lies with the sole aim of damaging his hard-earned reputation and bringing him to disrepute.
“It is incontrovertible that as a private citizen, Udofia has partnered and supported successive administrations in the state in various developmental initiatives, charitable causes and philanthropic gestures.
“Today it is easy to say Obong Akan Udofia (OAU) is the LARGEST PHILANTHROPIST in the history of Akwa Ibom.
“In 2019 he singlehandedly built and donated an ultra-modern 105-bedroom Hostel for post graduate students of Akwa Ibom State University, Ikot Akpaden.
“In recognition of his entrepreneurial prowess and philanthropy, in 2016 he became the first and only recipient of Akwa Ibom Award of Entrepreneurial Excellence by Governor Udom Emmanuel.
“It is on account of these gestures and many others that his bid to seek office as the Executive Governor of Akwa Ibom State has resonated well with the good people of the state.
“Rather than patronizing roadside gossip, surfing social media and issuing unfounded threats, the Attorney General of Akwa Ibom State must do more.
“He must go further and address the issue of ownership, funding, and cost of maintaining the aircrafts in the fleet as Akwa Ibom people are interested in the profitability of the venture.”
Govt’s earlier position
The Akwa Ibom State Government, in a recent statement by the Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Uko Udom, SAN, dismissed as false Mr Udofia’s claim that he conceived the idea of Ibom Air.
‘‘The idea of Ibom Air was conceived and executed by Governor Udom Emmanuel,’’ the statement said.
The government, which threatened legal action, said the APC chieftain has no “proprietary interest” in the airline, reputed to be one of the best in Nigeria.
Mr Udofia, in the statement from his campaign, has denied ever making such a claim that he owns Ibom Air.
“Rather than patronising roadside gossip, surfing social media and issuing unfounded threats, the Attorney General of Akwa Ibom State must do more. He must go further and address the issue of ownership, funding, and cost of maintaining the aircraft in the fleet as Akwa Ibom people are interested in the profitability of the venture,” Mr Udofia’s campaign said.
Ibom Air boosted with two aircraft
Meanwhile, Akwa Ibom Governor Udom Emmanuel, Monday, received two additional A320-200 Airbus aircraft on lease from a European company on Tuesday in Uyo for Ibom Air, a commercial airline owned by the Akwa Ibom State Government.
Emmanuel said Akwa Ibom was at the verge of inaugurating a world-class terminal building and a Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility at the Uyo Airport.
“Our terminal building is world class in Africa. Our MRO is world class. If you find one today in the entire Gulf of Guinea, tell me I will break down this one and construct another.
“I invest in areas we can have returns on our investments. Airbus is on us to come and use our MRO for all their regional flights.
“We are going to open up this place from January next year for commercial activities and we are going to earn in dollars,” Mr Emmanuel said.
The Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, who was the special guest at the event, applauded Mr Emmanuel for his significant strides in the aviation sector.
Mr Obaseki said Akwa Ibom is a flagship state in the country for its efforts at investing and expanding the aviation sector.
“Ibom Air is always fully booked. Let me thank you on behalf of Nigerians,” Mr Obaseki said.
The Managing Director, Ibom Airlines Ltd, Mfon Udom, in his remarks, announced plans to begin regional flights from 2023.
Udom said the new addition to the fleet of Ibom Air would expand its carrying capacity and boost employment opportunities in the state by 40 per cent.
“With this new capacity coming on board, we are delighted to inform our passengers that we have increased our offerings, providing more frequencies for their convenience.
“The Uyo-Lagos and Uyo-Abuja routes now have three frequencies each every weekday, while our Lagos-Abuja passengers will have seven frequencies to choose from both ways, every weekday,” he said.
The two Airbus A320-200 aircraft were taken on a wet-lease agreement from GetJet Airlines UAB, a European aircraft leasing company, for the duration of one year.
The airline now has nine aircraft in its fleet. (Premium Times/NAN)
