A Twitter user, Oluwatosin Olaseinde, wrote: “The N1.5 billion that was spent on consultation for Nigeria Air could have been used to purchase dialysis machines.”
Nigerians have taken to social media to express their disappointment following the suspension of the national carrier project, which was earlier scheduled to begin in December 2018.
Announcing the suspension of the project on Wednesday, a post on the Twitter handle of Hadi Sirika, Minister of State for Aviation, read: “I regret to announce that the Federal Executive Council has taken the tough decision to suspend the National Carrier Project in the interim. All commitments due will be honoured. We thank the public for the support as always". [story_link align="left"]JUST IN: FG Suspends National Carrier Project[/story_link]
However, the announcement did not appear to go down well with many Nigerians, who had lauded the project when it was launched.
A Twitter user, Oluwatosin Olaseinde, wrote: “The N1.5 billion that was spent on consultation for Nigeria Air could have been used to purchase dialysis machines.”
Captain Smith, another user, who responded to Olaseinde’s comment said: “Do you get!!! Or radiation machines.....no government hospital in lagos has a functioning one. Everyone is struggling to use that of Eko hospital a private owned business. It's appalling”.
Dalighieri asked in his tweet: “If they buy dialysis machines this year, what will be used in the campaign manifesto next election season?”
“They showed you a drawing of Nigeria Air; no plane, no hangar, no office, and a lot of you believed. That was how you people believed Oga Lifeless will make ₦1 equals $1. Too many stupid people in this country,” Oluyemi Fasipe tweeted with laughing emojis.
@AMADICHIMA tweeted: “It was all a big fraud, an avenue to empower the 'boys' [for] elections. First, AGF paid 17 billion for a job already paid for by GEJ, then they came with Nigeria Air. All that millions spent junketing round the world and designing logo gone. BMC hailed it. Let’s wait for another scam.”
Olola Seun Akioye, a Facebook user queried why the EFCC had not begun a probe of the aviation minister after he announced the suspension.
He wrote: “What do we call this nonsense? Over N1 billion spent on #NigeriaAir and all the minister could say is he regrets. Where is EFCC, where? And how do I blame those saying they stole that money for election? What nonsense is this? Nobody's head is rolling over this abi?”
While some were direct in their criticism, some took to sarcasm.
“Nigeria Air crashes without flying even once as Buhari suspends project indefinitely. What the wailers saw lying down in this government of lies and deceit, the zombie hailers will never even when on top of the highest mountain. All my hopes of watching #TSTV on a Nigeria Air flight while sipping canned zobo just vanished like Ambode's second term,” Amb Saviola Godwyn wrote on Facebook.