How a journalist’s picture exposed Buhari’s multi-billion Nigeria Air scam

In 2022, the Nigerian government under former President Muhammadu Buhari, unveiled Nigeria Air, a supposed national carrier touted as a symbol of national pride and a catalyst for economic growth.

However, beneath the pomp lay a web of deceit, corruption, and gross mismanagement.

The scam was so brazen that it took a single picture from a Nigerian journalist, Abubakar Mahmoud, to expose the entire charade.

In 2015, when Hadi Sirika was appointed minister of Aviation, he had put forward an aviation roadmap with National Carrier as the queen project, which he promised must be delivered to the Nigerian people before the end of Muhammadu Buhari administration.

After failed attempts by other ministers to set up and successful run a sustainable national carrier in the last 50 years from Nigerian Airways to New Co, Nigerian Global, Nigerian Eagle, Virgin Nigeria, Air Nigeria and Nigeria one, Sirika had promised that the former President Muhammadu Buhari administration was going to restore the pride of Nigeria in the skies by floating a national carrier which would bear Nigerian flag.

According to Sirika, the national carrier was to create jobs, stimulate economic growth, and restore Nigeria’s reputation in the aviation industry.

However, from the onset, the project was shrouded in secrecy, with the government refusing to disclose vital information about funding, ownership, and operational structure.

Despite the lack of transparency, the government went ahead to unveil the airline’s logo, complete with a mock-up of the plane.

But it was this very picture that would become the government’s undoing.

Abubakar Mahmoud, a Nigerian journalist, noticed that the plane was actually a hired Ethiopian Airways plane, and the logo was not officially registered.

This simple observation exposed the scam, revealing that Nigeria Air was not a real airline.

Further investigation revealed a trail of corruption and mismanagement orchestrated by Buhari’s Minister for Aviation, Hadi Sirika.

The project’s funding was mismanaged, with millions of dollars unaccounted for.

The fallout was immense. The government’s reputation was tarnished, and public trust was lost.

The project was suspended but the damage had already been done.

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