National Association of Nigeria Travel Agencies, NANTA, has frowned at the recent resolve by foreign airlines to sell exploitative tickets to Nigerians because of their inability to repatriate their funds trapped in the country.

Speaking at a media briefing in Lagos on Thursday, NANTA President, Mrs. Susan Akporiaye said the foreign airlines are now selling an economy ticket of N300,000 for N1.5 million, N3million and up to N4million.

According to her, this is a perceived retaliation of the foreign airlines inability to repatriate their trapped funds of over $465 million.

Mrs Akporiaye said: “In between these strangulating circumstances, the Airlines withdrew lower inventories across board, selling at the highest possible openings as a way to cushion their funds being trapped”.

She described this practice as unacceptable, exploitative and hostile to the survival of the Nigerian aviation downstream sector. She also said this is solely targeted at Nigeria and Nigerians, and this is not seen anywhere in Africa even in countries where the foreign airlines also have their funds trapped.

“It is sad that Nigerians have to buy tickets to the tune of three to four million naira and be charged as high as one million naira to change travel dates even on tickets bought before this wahala began”.

“This is unacceptable, exploitative, and hostile to the survival of Nigerian aviation downstream sector and to which we call for sanity and return to the best inventory practices and deployment”, the NANTA President said.

She therefore appealed to the foreign Airlines to have a rethink on these unnecessary measures that NANTA finds exploitative; “restore inventories across board and think of the good days when the airlines flew in and out of Nigeria, enjoying the best patronage from the Nigerian flying public.”

While sypathizing with the foreign airlines, she disclosed that the airlines are deeply pained as the recently released trapped funds by the CBN have not even gotten to some of the airlines while those who received 25% of the trapped funds were even short paid.

According to her, “there is no transparency in the process and there is trust issues as the airlines are not really sure if the release is sincere by government”.

Also speaking at the media briefing, Mr. Yinka Folami, Vice President of NANTA and the Treasurer, NANTA, Dr. Dagunduro Olatokunbo said, it was wrong for the airlines to exploit Nigerians because of the issues of their trapped funds in the country. Folami therefore called on the federal government to reach an amicable settlement of the issues.

“And to our Government, we appreciate the response to the release of some funds, but we urge Government as a matter of urgency to open further windows of engagement by calling for a meeting with all parties involved; to include CBN, Minister of Aviation, Minister of Finance, Foreign Airlines, NCAA, IATA and NANTA”, the NANTA Vice President added.