Luis Suarez Ban: Uruguayan President Slams FIFA, Claims It’s Punishment For Knocking Out England And Italy

Uruguayan President Jose Mujica has weighed into the Luis Suarez biting row with a stirring defence of his compatriot.

Suarez was yesterday banned by FIFA for nine international games, but also received a four-month suspension from all footballing activity and was fined around £85,000.

But Mujica, who is renowned for being one of South America’s more liberal premiers, claimed that the sanction against Suarez was excessive, and was punishment for knocking out European heavyweights Italy and England.

“They’ve gone too far,” said Mujica.

“They want to punish him severely and because we are Uruguayan and we are small it’s cheap for them to do so, it doesn’t cost them anything. GALLERY

“They measure him by a different yardstick and it is that which makes us indignant.

“We knocked out England and Italy, look how much money they’ve lost there!

“The issue is that we are a small country and our television rights aren’t worth very much money.

“I’m waiting for him to come back so I can give him a big hug.”

SEE How Michael Jackson’s Kids Spend Their Massive $8 Million A Year

On a hot, lazy Las Vegas day, Michael Jackson’s eyes were glued to a catalog as he shopped from his hotel room for mundane but expensive trinkets such as Rolex watches, Barbie dolls and artwork.

The 2002 shopping spree continued until Jacko exhausted his line of credit with the hotel. Frustrated, he reached in a duffel bag and handed his 4- and 3-year-old kids a stack of bills totaling $20,000 and ordered their nanny to “take them out and buy them whatever they wanted.”

“He said, ‘Go out and entertain yourselves’,” recalled former pal Marc Schaffel, who’s poised to marry the late singer’s ex-wife Debbie Rowe later this year.

Today, five years after Jacko’s death, the spending spree continues, with his three kids — now 17, 16 and 12 — enjoying a whopping $8 million allowance a year.

And that money — up from the $5 million stipend they used to split, thanks to the estate’s growing earnings — is separate from the $1 million-plus (up from $700,000) grandmother Katherine receives to watch over Prince, Paris and Blanket.

Among the expenses: Prince’s $30,000 yearly tuition at a private school and the six-figure yearly payout to house, educate and treat Paris at a therapeutic boarding school in Utah following her 2013 suicide attempt.

Prince, who’s already shown himself a ladies man, has showered more than $50,000 in custom-made jewelry and other gifts on at least three different girlfriends, a family insider said. That’s $10,000 more than he plunked down for a new Ford pickup truck.

Paris Jackson and Justin Bieber at the MICHAEL JACKSON HAND & FOOTPRINT CEREMONY CELEBRATING THE KING OF POP, January 26, 2012 at the Grauman’s Chinese Theater, Hollywood, California. (Photo Credit: Sue Schneider/MGP Agency)

Three vacations a year to destinations including Hawaii and Vegas annually set the kids back about $350,000 — after payments for bodyguards, relatives tagging along, chauffeurs, first-class airfare and plenty of luxuries.

In Hawaii, the family usually surfs the secluded beach and roams the Kahala Hotel & Resort in Honolulu. They relax in the $5,500-per-night Signature Suite.

At school, Paris buys gifts such as footwear and athletic gear for her friends. In Vegas, the kids have often enjoyed the 2,000-square-foot Penthouse Suite at the Bellagio, which runs from $4,000 to $5,000 nightly, not including the cost of the concierge they regularly use and access to the fitness center and the room-service tabs that have run as high as the cost of the room itself.

Blanket regularly dips into his inheritance, paying $200 an hour for karate lessons and more for a personal trainer.

Blanket Jackson and body guard pictured at the Karate Dawn in Encino on May 2013

While he enjoys the personal chef at the Jackson family’s $26,500-a-month rented mansion in Calabasas, Calif., he regularly dials his cousins and treats them to dinner at trendy restaurants before taking in a movie. The tab: usually about $500 plus tips.

“These things that they’re doing they are mostly paying for themselves, with their own money. Look, they also get $15,000 to $20,000 every month just in walking-around money. No one else has that kind of dough around here,” one source said.

“This is why you have had so much of the fighting going on in the family. But the battles have calmed since their uncles have finally found consistent work and everyone has pretty much left [Katherine] alone about money.”

Still, family members believe the children are a lot more frugal than their father was with his.

Prince Jackson and friend (middle) and Blanket Jackson (right)

“They’re not [as bad] as their father… They also seem to have more of a sense as to when they may be going overboard,” the source said.

Jacko famously paid his pals Elizabeth Taylor and Marlon Brando $1 million each to appear at his 30th anniversary concert in New York. He also regularly lavished Taylor with diamonds and other jewelry and perfume that easily cost him millions.

“There were times he and Liz would be sitting at her house or at Neverland, and she’d be looking through a catalog of jewels and she’d just point out the ones she liked,” another insider said.

“Once, when she pointed out the jewels, instead of ordering them, Michael hired a private jet and sent two security guys to Switzerland to buy the jewelry and he made sure that they came back right away so that he could give it to Liz before she would leave the ranch,” he said.

The Jackson children pictured with their aunt Latoya Jackson at the launch of the Pink drink

Jacko once dropped $4 million on a life-size bronze statue of a child and bought two $75,000 bottles of perfume because the flask was made of gold and diamonds.

He also spent $90,000 “wooing” child star Macaulay Culkin at a Hawaiian resort in 1991.

A spokeswoman for Culkin declined comment.“It was the damnedest thing, he paid for a radio advertisement to announce a false ceremony that he was supposed to attend and he thought that it would impress Mac, so that the child would find it cool to hang with him. Then, he takes him on this expensive gondola-like ride along the ocean and buys Mac’s caretaker an expensive necklace and sends her shopping just so he could spend time with him,” the insider recalled.

Two other close family sources said that despite his spending, Prince has a goal: to buy back Jacko’s Neverland Ranch, which has been in the control of creditors for more than a decade.

Prince Jackson pictured leaving a cafe

“The asking price right now is somewhere around $35 million, but the kid is already thinking about bargains,” one of the sources said, noting the price was more than $50 million before all of the exotic animals and amusement rides were removed. “Prince wants it back, and he wants it restored.”

Prince plans to put away as much cash as he can now but he stands to gain a windfall at age 33, when Jacko’s will grants the kids equal shares of half of the estate, whose value has already ballooned to $2 billion.

When each child turns 40, they inherit the rest.

Blanket Jackson and brother Prince Jackson signing autographs in Gary, Indiana hometown of their father, Michael Jackson

The teen even has the backing of at least one of his uncles, Jermaine, who still wants Jacko’s remains buried at the fabled estate.

“Jermaine definitely is in favor of this and he thinks it’s a great idea for Michael’s kids to have the place and do whatever it is that they wish,” the source continued. “He hopes that if the family does win control of Neverland, they can eventually put his brother’s remains there.”

From Left: Paris Jackson, Latoya Jackson, Prince Jackson, and Blanket Jackson at the unveiling of the artwork from Michael on the 8th of August, 2011

Nigeria hires U.S. lobby firm for N195 million to launder image over handling of Chibok abduction

                                 President Goodluck Jonathan

The Nigerian government has come under local and international condemnation over its far-from-impressive handling of the Chibok abduction.

In order to whitewash its inept handling of the kidnap of over 200 schoolgirls kidnapped by the terrorist group, Boko Haram, the Goodluck Jonathan administration has awarded a N195 million ($1.2 million) contract to U.S. Public Relations and lobby firm, Levick, to help change “international and local media narrative” surrounding its efforts to rescue the girls, Washington DC based newspaper, The Hill, is reporting.

Boko Haram militants kidnapped the girls, who were writing their final examination, more than 70 days ago from their dormitory at the Government Secondary School, Chibok near Maiduguri .

In a video, Boko Haram leader, Abubarka Shekau, threatened to sell the girls into slavery. However the group later offered to swap the girls for Boko Haram fighters held by the government.

The Federal Government has come under severe criticism from local and international media for its lethargic handling of the abduction, prompting the ruling party, The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), to accuse the opposition of sponsoring a media campaign to discredit the government.

On Wednesday, the U.S. government told Nigerians to hold the government accountable for the failure to rescue the girls more than two months after they were kidnapped.

Details contained in the contract document obtained by The Hill show that the firm will also be “assisting the government’s efforts to mobilize international support in fighting Boko Haram as part of the greater war on terror”.

The firm also promised to assist the government in effecting “real change” in the country.

“A more comprehensive approach using vehicles such as public diplomacy and engaging outside experts to enact real changes is how the advocacy industry is evolving,” Phil Elwood, a Vice President at Levick, told The Hill. “A communications strategy alone is not enough to solve the complex and multifaceted problems facing some of the more controversial nations.”

“For me, after talking to him, the priority for President Jonathan beyond any is finding and bringing home the girls,” said Lanny Davis, an Executive Vice President at Levick.

“There’s got to be a way to amplify what he’s saying and doing to find these girls because over here in America, we’re not hearing much about his effort,” Mr. Davis added.

Levick will also be working with Jared Genser, a human rights attorney, who has worked for notable personalities such as South African Nobel Peace Prize winner, Desmond Tutut and Burmese pro-democracy advocate Aung San Suu Kyi in the past to publicise “President Goodluck Jonathan Administration’s past, present and future priority to foster transparency, democracy and the rule of law throughout Nigeria.”

Mr. Genser told The Hill that he took the job following Mr Jonathan’s commitment to tackle Boko Haram.

“In terms of advancing human rights, however, the real work has to be done working with governments that are well meaning but lack the capacity — or as much capacity as they might like — and want to do the right thing,” he said.

“At the end of the day, the [Nigerian] president has said clearly to us that he wants results,” he said.
“I would not sit here and pretend that we are singlehandedly going to rescue the girls, that’s not our role,” Genser said. “What we can do is, we can provide advice and support about how to do so in accordance with international human rights norms and standards,” he added.

The contract shows that Levick will be paid N11,625,000.00 ($75,000.00) by month for its effort plus extra cost for advertisements, video production and website development. This will be done through an unnamed state-owned media agency.

The company will also receive additional fee of N3,487,500.00 ($22,500.00) if an associate of the company travels to Nigeria.

An associate of Mr. Genser company, Perseus Strategies, will get, N3,875,000.00 ($25,000.00) per month as retainer.

The hiring of Levick confirms the report by respected PR news website, www.holmesreport.com, that the government was in market for a PR firm to help bolster its dented image internationally over its far-from-impressive handling of the Chibok abduction.

At the time, the Nigerian government denied the publication while the Public Relations Consultants Association of Nigeria, (PRCAN) criticised the government describing its search for a foreign PR firm as a “needless strategic gaffe”.

“The purported search is premised on a wrong foundation of white washing Nigeria before foreign media and audiences. However, the real challenge before the Federal Government of Nigeria lies elsewhere and that is at the home front with its citizens, representing the primary stakeholders,” the PRCAN said in a statement at the time.

America honours NAPTIP boss as 2014 trafficking in person hero

Appointed Executive Secretary of NAPTIP in 2011, Mrs. Jedy-Agba leads Nigeria’s effort to eradicate human trafficking, as well as ensure justice for trafficked persons.

The Executive Secretary of Nigeria’s National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons [NAPTIP], Beatrice Jefy-Agba, has been named a 2014 trafficking in persons hero.

The award was conferred on her by the United States Secretary of State, John Kerry, in the Benjamin Franklin Room of the State department, Wednesday.

According to a statement made available to PREMIUM TIMES by NAPTIP’s media director, Arinze Orakwue, the award is in recognition of her tireless efforts in fighting human trafficking and her passionate commitment to end modern day slavery.

The U.S. government said Mrs. Jedy-Agba is one of the 10 notable persons globally, who despite resistance, opposition and even threats to their lives protect victims, punish offenders and raise awareness of ongoing criminal practices in their countries and beyond.

During the award ceremony, Mr. Kerry said “the crime of human trafficking affects all parts of the world and no government is doing enough to combat it”.

He lauded the efforts of NAPTIP, noting that Mrs. Jedy-Agba has transformed the anti-human trafficking landscape by incorporating anti trafficking issues into national development discourse, planning and policy.

He also called on all the awardees to form a global network of action and actors to combat the scourge.

The Secretary of State said “it takes a global village working together to combat a global crime”.

Apparently delighted by the recognition, Mrs. Jedy-Agba said the award would spur NAPTIP further towards more effective initiative in the fight against human trafficking.

The NAPTIP boss said “in the fact of justice and equality, all humanity are connected and criminals thrive when we disconnect”.

Other activities lined up for the awardees include a two-week programme of meetings.

During the period, the awardees will meet with officials from the U.S. Department of State, NGO representatives, some U.S. government agencies, and professionals.

The meetings are for sharing ideas in a continued effort to further end modern slavery.

Mrs. Jedy-Agba was appointed Executive Secretary of NAPTIP in 2011. She has since then taken the lead in Nigeria’s effort to eradicate human trafficking, as well as ensure justice for trafficked persons.

The 2014 trafficking in persons report placed Nigeria on tier 2 ranking which means the country needed to increase its efforts in all areas including but not limited to justice for victims, prosecution for traffickers, and increasing prevention efforts through awareness creation.

The report called on NIgerian legislators to urgently amend the draft of the anti- trafficking bill to increase penalties to traffickers and ensure that the activities of the agency receive adequate funding as a national priority. .

High-level corruption rocks $470million CCTV project that could secure Abuja

Since the installation of the CCTV cameras, criminal have launched violent attacks on Abuja without being detected.
 
The failure of the National Public Security Communication System, NPSCS; otherwise known as the CCTV project, has heightened the level of insecurity in the Nigerian capital, Abuja, PREMIUM TIMES checks have revealed.

The project which was initiated by late President Umaru Yar’Adua, was conceived to help security agencies in the Federal Capital Territory check the growing insecurity in the federal capital.

But since the installation of the CCTV cameras and allied equipment, criminals and insurgents have over and over again launched violent attacks on the city without being detected.

Between 2010 when the project was initiated and now, Abuja has come under seven deadly attacks, leaving scores of people dead and properties worth billions of naira destroyed.

The first bomb explosion in the city occurred on 1st October, 2010, a few meters from the Three Arms Zone, during the country’s 50th Independence Day Anniversary celebrations.

Three Arms Zone is home to the Presidential Villa, the National Assembly Complex and the Supreme Court of Nigeria.

The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, MEND claimed responsibility for the twin car bombs which killed 10 and injured many more.

On June 16, 2011, a suicide bomber drove a bomb-laden car and rammed into the parking lot of the Police headquarters, shortly after the convoy of the then Inspector-General of Police, Hafiz Ringim, entered the complex.

Two persons died, including the traffic warden who prevented the bomber from ramming the bomb-laden vehicle into the main building, while several cars at the parking were burnt.

On August 26, 2011, another suicide bomber rammed a bomb-laden car into the United Nations building along the Diplomatic Drive in Abuja, killing about 20 persons.

Another suicide bomber, on April 26, 2012, attacked the Abuja office of the Thisday Newspaper, ripping off the roof of the building and killing innocent staff.

However, on April 14, twin blasts rocked the Nyanya Motor Park killing 71, while 124 persons suffered life-threatening injuries.

Barely two weeks after the April 14 attack, another one occurred opposite the same Nyanya Motor Park on May 1, killing nine and injuring scores of persons.

On Wednesday, June 24, another bomb went off at Emab Plaza, a busy shopping plaza in the heart of the capital, killing 21 persons.

In all the attacks, the CCTV cameras installed across the city could not pick up images of the perpetrators of the dastardly acts.

PREMIUM TIMES has learnt that some of the CCTV cameras installed around the capital city are mere toys, ostensibly fixed to deceive the public.

Top officers at the Force Headquarters, who pleaded not to be quoted because they were not authorized to speak on the matter, said while some of the cameras were functional, several others,
were dormant, making the task of policing the city a difficult and sometimes impossible one.

It was also found that most of the crimes in the city are committed outside the CCTV coverage area as most of the functional cameras are concentrated within the Three Arms Zone and some parts of the Business District.

One of our sources said, “The truth is that the CCTV cameras in Abuja are not helping us much in tackling insecurity in the city. It is like taking an inadequate dosage of a drug when you have a major health challenge.

“The drug will not work because it does not meet the required dosage. But when you take the required dosage, the drug will be able to deal with the ailment.

“That is the same situation we have with the CCTV cameras installed here in Abuja. Some of the cameras are working but a lot more are not working thereby creating many dark spots in the city.

“The camera is not helping much because most of the crimes occur in some of the dark spots. If a crime is committed in some of the coverage areas, it will be possible to detect them with the cameras.”

Another official revealed that the NPSCS project has been a subject of hire-wired intrigue and corruption by top officials of the Police Affairs Ministry and the Presidency.

“The contract was awarded and paid for, long before the present IGP came on board but a lot of people are trying to rope him into the problem when they know those who were responsible for the failed project,” he said.

PREMIUM TIMES learnt that the NPSCS project was initiated to help Nigeria tackle the increasing level of insecurity in the country as far back as 2010.

Investigation showed that late President Umaru Yar’Adua was persuaded by some of his powerful aides to award the $470 million project to the Chinese firm, ZTE Corporation, in August 2010 without carrying out due diligence on the company.

The project, which was funded through a $600 million credit facility obtained from the Chinese EXIMBANK, was slated for completion in May, 2011.

Part of the project consisted of the installation of Close Circuit Television Cameras, CCTV, in many parts of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT.

The NPSCS project is based on the Global Open Trunking Architecture (GoTa), a new technology that provides strategic telecommunications solutions to targeted clientele.

Olusegun Aganga, the then Minister of Finance, led the Federal Government’s delegation to Beijing where the loan agreement for the project was signed with the Chinese EXIMBANK in June 2010.
Former Minister of Police Affairs, Adamu Waziri and the then Inspector-General of Police, Halfiz Ringim, were also part of the delegation.

The $600 million financing portfolio for the project was secured as a soft credit loan with three percent interest repayable in 10 years after an initial 10 years of grace.

The project was expected to create a dedicated trunk system for inter-agency communications and linkages as well as remove critical national security agencies from private network operators and service providers.

Late Mr. Yar’Adua had during a visit to China on March 1, 2008, made a brief stop at Shanghai where he held talks with top executives of ZTE Researching and Development Centre.

The outcome of the discussion culminated in the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Federal Government of Nigeria and ZTE Corporation.

The government, PREMIUM TIMES learnt, made a down payment of $70, 500,000 which is 15 percent of the total contract sum and signed a Sovereign Guarantee to the tune of $399, 500, 000 to enable ZTE source the loan from the Chinese Government.

However, the project was piloted with the installation of solar-powered security cameras and allied security infrastructure in many parts of Abuja.

But PREMIUM TIMES has learnt that some of the materials deployed for the critical national security infrastructure are of low quality compared to what those used in China. Yet Nigerian authorities are not known to have lifted a finger in protest.

This newspaper also learnt that the contract was signed and executed in secrecy based on the Memorandum of Understanding, MoU, signed between the Nigerian government and the Chinese firm.

Article 4 of MoU specifically indicated that the terms agreed upon by the parties be kept secret.
“The terms of this MoU are agreed by both parties to be confidential. All confidential information shall not be disclosed to third parties or used for any other purpose or the possibility of a business relationship between the parties unless agreed by both parties,” the document read.

The secrecy clause in the MoU, PREMIUM TIMES gathered, was created to allow top officials of the Police Affairs Ministry and the presidency to negotiate away some of the critical elements of the project.

The source at the Presidency further confided in PREMIUM TIMES that the secrecy clause violated every rule of transparency and accountability and should not have been allowed in the MoU.

When contacted, the Force Public Relations Officer, Frank Mba, told PREMIUM TIMES he was not competent to speak on the NPSCS contract.

The Chief Press Secretary at the Police Affairs Ministry, James Odaudu, told PREMIUM TIMES the CCTV project is a sensitive national security operation that should not be discussed publicly.

When further pressed for comments, he said, “It is not possible that the whole of Abuja can be covered in one phase of the project. It is an ongoing project with a lot of rooms for expansion.

“If there are challenges, we will sort them out with time. There are no projects without challenges.”
Mr. Aganga, the then Finance Minister, now Minter of Trade and Investment would not speak to PREMIUM TIMES or reply to an email sent to him on the matter.

When PREMIUM TIMES visited ZTE Corporation Nigeria at No. 5 Dep Street, Maitama, Abuja to speak with its officials on the matter, a security man at the gates said visitors are not allowed into the premises unless on invitation.

Attempts to convince the private security staff on the need to alert top officials of the company on the presence of our staff, also failed.

An email to the corporate headquarters of the company in China was not also replied, weeks after it was sent.

Nigerian government acted right in dropping corruption charges against Abacha – Adoke

The government said that it adhered to “international best practices” in dropping the charges against Mr. Abacha.

The Federal Government has said it dropped corruption charges against Mohammed Abacha, the son of late Nigeria dictator, Sani Abacha, in the “best interest of the country.”

It also said that it adhered to “international best practices” in dropping the charges against Mr. Abacha.

In a statement reacting to the criticism of the deal reached with the Abacha family by global anti-corruption organisation, Transparency international, the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mohammed Adoke, said the government dropped the charges to facilitate the repatriation of the country’s fund held by the Abachas and their associates in Europe and America.

Rather than criticism, Mr. Adoke said, the Jonathan administration deserves praise for what he described as its “effective strategies” of putting pressure on the Abacha family and its associates through sustained criminal proceedings in various jurisdictions to facilitate the return of the stolen funds.

He said this strategy has led to “significant increase, both in the quantum and rate of recoveries.”
The government had accused Mohammed of receiving stolen property worth N100.38 billion. The money is believed to have been stolen by the late dictator when he was the Nigerian head of state from 1993 to 1998.

The Federal Government’s lawyer, Daniel Enwelum, however, made an oral application asking the court to withdraw the criminal charges against the suspect. He also applied to discontinue the case.

Transparency International condemned the dropping of the charges against Mohammed Abacha, saying the Federal Government is encouraging impunity in the polity by its action.

“Allowing the theft of public funds to go unpunished sends the wrong message that those with powerful connections can act with impunity. The case should have been fully prosecuted, and the government has not given adequate reasons for dropping the charges,” read a statement signed by TI Regional Director for sub-Saharan Africa, Chantal Uwimana.

However, Mr. Adoke said the criminal proceeding originally instituted against the Abachas has forced them to discontinue contesting cases filed in Liechtenstein, Luxemburg, the United Kingdom and the United States of America.

He said the Federal Government has succeeded in repatriating a sizeable amount from this jurisdiction as a result of that:

“The aforementioned steps have led to the recovery of 226.3 million US Dollars from Liechtenstein in addition to the 7.5 Million Euros that was recovered from an associated company of the Abachas’ in Liechtenstein in 2011. It will also be recalled that in 2011, the Federal Government was able to recover and repatriate through negotiated settlement with the Jersey, the sum of 22.5 million pounds confiscated from an associate of the Abacha family by the Island of Jersey.”

Mr. Adoke projected that by dropping the charges against the Mohammed Abacha, the Federal Government will recover “the sum of $380 Million US Dollars from the Luxembourg proceedings and $550 Million US Dollars from forfeiture proceedings instituted by the US Department of Justice.”

He said it is false for TI to state that “the Abachas have been allowed to get away with little loss”; as the aim of “prosecution of corruption cases is the deprivation of the criminal offender of the proceeds of crime. This is achieved by the taking away of such proceeds of crime by the State (regurgitation and restitution). This principal objective has been achieved to a very significant degree in the Abacha proceedings.”

Mr. Adoke said while he understands the yearning of people who are calling for the custodial sentencing of Mohammed Abacha, they should also realise that the case has been on for 16 years with little or no progress made in that regard.

He further added that the case against the Abachas is not as straightforward as many assume. He said the norm of criminal prosecutions, which requires “proof beyond reasonable doubt” poses great difficulty for the prosecution as any shadow of doubt is resolved in favour of the accused person.”

He said the government consulted widely with international experts and partners that included development agencies and its decision to discontinue the criminal proceeding was informed by the feedback it received.

He said the government acted in the best interest of the country judging from the constraint posed by the case.

Aviation expert warns Nigeria to be wary of airfare slash

The aviation expert urged the airlines to explore professional recommendations in line with the International Air Transport Association.

The Sabre Travel Network, STN, an aviation service provider, on Thursday warned the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA, to be wary of the recent reduction in airfares by some domestic airlines.

The President of STN, West Africa, Gbenga Olowo, said in Lagos that passengers were more interested in their safety rather than airfare slashes.

Airfares in the sector have dropped in the last few months by 60 per cent in the local scene as a result of new entrants into the sub-sector.

An hour flight between Lagos and Abuja now goes as low as N10, 656 and N18, 000, depending on the time of booking and the airline a passenger is purchasing the ticket from.

Earlier in the previous week, Dana Air announced a starting price of N9, 000 on all its routes, while other airlines like Med-View, Aero and FirstNation have followed suit.

Mr. Olowo said he was surprised at the sudden crash of airfare.

“I read with shock that a one hour tariff will be selling for between N7, 000 and N15, 000 due to the emergence of new airlines and competition in the market.

“Beyond the misconception of being capitalist, this should worry Nigerians and the regulator.

“With authority, I submit that this is not a sensible market penetration strategy, but a confirmation of cash flow problem and survival need.

“A one hour flight in 1994 was 100 dollars, how could it come cheaper 20 years after given all environmental and market considerations?” Olowo said.

He charged the airlines to explore professional recommendations in line with the International Air Transport Association (IATA) in respect of the airfares.

(NAN)