By D.Gershom Josiah.
TUE, JULY 24 2018-theG&BJournal-Nigeria Air unveiled its logo last week in London. And immediately drew the flak of cynics and naysayers. For many it resurrected sad memories of the now defunct Nigerian Airways that was run aground by poor and clueless management. I had it on good authority that a good number of their staff have not received terminal benefits to this day. That is spooky.
It is now never to be debated that government is a bad business man , a veritable agent of waste and inefficiency, according to O. Lawal.
Does this mean that lessons cannot be learned from the past? I have listened with interest to them who insist that the present effort will also come to nought. I think differently.
First, this is the season of Public Private Partnership. This model leaves the enterprise in the hands of hard nosed business people anxious to recover their investment within a time frame. This keeps them on the competitive edge to engender a harvest of profit to justify their effort. What’s more Aviation minister, himself a pilot has said Nigeria brings only 5 percent to the table. Thus the prospect of a colossal loss of capital is avoided as had been the case with the previous national carrier.
Shall we not try again because of the miserable misadventure of yesteryears? We are better experienced now and our stake is meagre. Also the sentimental attachment to a national carrier comes with national pride no longer enjoyed due to the absence of a national carrier.
Lastly, getting trapped in an inglorious past leads nowhere. Another effort as proposed by Sirika may be the magic needed to rebrand Nigeria. That is if the new experiment works. It will.
