Rent-An-Airplane: EFCC Exposes How Hadi Sirika Used Ethiopian Airline Plane as “Nigeria Air” Photo-Op
The multi-billion naira Nigeria Air project was allegedly nothing more than a carefully scripted three-day theatrical performance.
At the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Abuja, an Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) investigator, Christopher Odofin, exposed the bizarre mechanics behind the controversial “launch” of Nigeria’s defunct national carrier by former Aviation Minister, Hadi Sirika.
The 72-Hour “Ghost Flight” Timeline
According to EFCC’s official documents, the chartered Boeing aircraft never belonged to Nigeria. It was a temporary rental from Ethiopian Airlines, brought in solely to create the illusion that Sirika had fulfilled his ministerial promise before leaving office.
Just five days before the Buhari administration expires, Sirika’s team signs a secret charter agreement with Ethiopian Airlines for a “static display” of an aircraft.
An Ethiopian Airlines jet is painted with the Nigeria Air logo, departing Addis Ababa to arrive at Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, on the morning of May 27.
The plane sits on the tarmac. Local models are dressed up in fake Nigeria Air uniforms to pose for promotional press photos.
On the morning of the presidential handover, the plane departs Abuja, flies back to Addis Ababa, and has the Nigeria Air decals immediately scrubbed off.
Models, Uniforms, and ₦2 Billion Fraud
The EFCC revealed that the entire stunt was meticulously outlined in the charter contract. The agreement explicitly stated that the flight would be operated by an Ethiopian Airlines crew in their official uniforms, while local Nigerian models would be flown in just to pose for “ceremonial pictures.”
“The display of the aircraft was deliberately planned to coincide with the end of the tenure… to pass the aircraft off as the actualization of his promise,” the witness testified.
Hadi Sirika is currently facing a six-count amended charge bordering on abuse of office and the misappropriation of over ₦2 billion in public funds. He is being prosecuted alongside his daughter, Fatima, his son-in-law, Hamma Jalal Sule, and Al Buraq Global Investment Limited.
The defense team offered no objections to the massive pile of signed documents, contracts, and certificates of identification admitted into evidence. The trial will resume with the playing of a critical compact disk containing an audio recording of Sirika himself.
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