Rep. James Faleke, Chair of the House Committee on Finance, didn’t hold back during an interactive session in Abuja, warning that the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) might face EFCC takeover due to an alleged N43 billion revenue gap reported for 2022.
Faleke’s statement came amid revelations from the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), detailing that local airlines transported 16 million passengers, with an additional three million by international airlines in 2022.
The documents disclosed that N1.28 trillion in ticket sales from international passengers contributed to a five per cent share of N64 billion, divided among five regulatory agencies.
Contrarily, data from the ADR16 documents managed by Nigeria Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) indicated 14,572,614 passengers flown by local airlines in 2021, revealing a disparity in declared revenues. NCAA reported revenue of N12.7 billion, while their computed share should have amounted to N66 billion from both local and international travel in 2022.
Of the declared revenue, N31 billion stemmed from local flights and N35.85 billion from international flights. The distribution formula allocated 56% to the NCAA, 22% to NAMA, 9% to the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMET), 7% to the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology (NCAT), and 6% to the Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB).
Faleke highlighted an additional N8 billion allegedly unaccounted for from international passenger revenue. In response, NCAA representatives, Captain Ibrahim Dambazau and Abubakar Gachi, pointed to certain local airlines indebted to the agency.
Seeking clarity, Faleke demanded the NCAA’s audited reports, comprehensive bank records pre-Treasury Single Account (TSA) transition from 2015 to Q1 2023, and a list of debtor airlines. The committee aimed to untangle the discrepancies surrounding the agency’s reported and remitted revenues.
