Johnson Arumemi-Ikhide
Arik Air shareholders are compelled by the need to clarify and correct false and misleading statements attributed to Mr, Ahmed Kuru, the Managing Director of the Assets Management Corporation of Nigeria, (AMCON) in Thisday interview published on 25th September 2023. In the said interview, Mr, Ahmed Kuru, was being economical with the truth as in repeated attempts to cover up the truth about AMCON forceful take-over, mismanagement, and destruction of Arik Air.
Mr Kuru`s tactics of approbation and reprobation to justify AMCON’s forceful take-over of Arik Air is a poor defence of his misadventure into Arik Air. It is an overreach beyond AMCON’s remit, duties, powers and capability. For the avoidance of doubt , AMCON’s act does not empower take-over of a company because of operational issues.
Former Vice President Osinbajo’s Involvement – Mr Kuru’s claim of Prof Yemi Osinbajo’s directive to AMCON for the forceful take-over of Arik is untenable. Why drag the former Vice President into the theatre of confusion and shame? How would the former Vice President, a learned man of law, direct AMCON to take over a private business without being advised by Mr Kuru? Mr Kuru should be courageous enough to own up to the fact that he misadvised the former vice president rather than referring to any security report.
Flight Delays –
It is embarrassing that AMCON MD, will attribute delays as one of the reasons for his forceful take-over of Arik Air. As much as delays are not desired and encouraged by any airline, they are inevitable sometimes due to reasons of technical, weather safety. Airports issues and other reasons beyond the airlines’ control. Perhaps Mr Kuru’s AMCON should take over all local and foreign airlines who may have occasional delays! We therefore urge him to identify those passengers that were delayed for 3 days by Arik Air, since he acted on their behalf. Afterall, he has assumed the roles of NCAA, Federal Consumer Protection Agency, and the law courts who have statutory oversights on such matters.
FAAN Payments –
It is a fact that Arik Air disputed some bill/payments records with FAAN. This matter is pending at the Federal High Court Lagos. Suffice it to state that during the last sitting before the AMCON take over, FAAN lawyers requested for an adjournment. This matter is therefore subjudice; however, it cannot be the basis for AMCON take-over of Arik, except Mr Kuru’s AMCON has assumed a status above the law courts in Nigeria.
Insurance Payments –
Arik Air had not at any time defaulted in its insurance payments. Arik overseas Insurers, Lloyds of London have receipts of payments to their local representatives, Consolidated Insurance Limited who could not access forex due to scarcity sometime around 2016… The records are available for all to see. Mr Kuru was simply being economical with the truth.
Market Share –
It is instructive to note that contrary to the 40% market share claimed by Mr Kurus in the referenced interview, AMCON filings in law court for the exparte order to take-over Arik Air stated 55% as provided to AMCON by Senator Hadi Sirika, former Minister of Aviation. Thus, Mr Kuru’s statements between AMCON filings in law court and press statements are contradictory. It is however interesting to note that the current market share under AMCONs receivership with the best brains in aviation (according to Mr Kuru) is now about 5%. This is the consequences of AMCON’s shut down of 80% of domestic routes and frequencies, total shut down of all West Coast of Africa, with Continental African and Intercontinental routes of London, New York, etc including the multi million dollars slots in London Heathrow and New York Kennedy airports since taking over in 2017.
30 Aircraft Claims and Engines Swaps –
Contrary to Mr Kuru’s spurious claims, Arik Air shareholders never claimed to have operated 30 aircraft at any point in time. Arik Air aircraft are newly manufactured with their original engines mounted, thus there was no need for engine swaps as claimed by Mr Kuru. If there were any engine swaps, it must have been during the Six and half years of receivership by AMCON,
Bank Creditors –
We state unequivocally that as at 9thFebruary 2017 when AMCON forced Arik Air into the receivership management of Mr. Oluseye Opasanya (SAN), the airline was not in default of any of its financial lease and operating loan obligations to any Bank, including the European Credit Agency (ECA)/HSBC facility. Suffice it to state that with the 2010 banking reforms, the CBN directed the conversion of all local bank guarantees of foreign loans from off-balance sheet to on-balance sheet. Thus, with this CBN directive, AMCON took over the European Credit Agency (ECA)/HSBC finance facility supported by the local guarantee of Union Bank plc. AMCON renegotiated the facility with Union Bank from single digit to double digit interest rate without involving Arik Air management. This was done arbitrarily without recourse to the fact that Arik Air had been servicing that facility without default for about 3 years. A case of shaving a man’s head in his absence.
Debt of N250 billion to N300 billion?
We wish to encourage AMCON MD to cross check his facts as his agency did not file neither the sum of N250B nor N300B, in its claim of the airline’s alleged indebtedness in the federal high court in suit no FHC/L/CS/175/2017. This suit formed the basis upon which AMCON obtained an exparte order to take over Arik Air on 9TH February 2017. Mr Kuru’s claim is patently false, contradictory, and misleading. We respectfully request him to consult his lawyers so as to spare the public the needless overload of misinformation.
Aircraft Seizure –
Contrary to the false claims of Arik Aircraft seizures by Mr Kuru. Arik had no issues with aircraft lessors and financiers, and neither was any aircraft impounded nor seized anywhere in the world until mid – 2019 well into the receivership by AMCON when the lessors were not paid as directed by the CBN letter of 14 March 2017 to banks. We request that both Mr Kuru and the CBN should explain to the public, what objective and whose interest is served by the referenced CBN letter of 14 March 2017. (BSD/GDA/CON/AMC/46/008)
The NG Eagle/Exit Strategy –
It is regrettable that Mr Kuru is again being economical with the truth on the issue of NG Eagle (RC Number 1600277). It is a verifiable fact from the Corporate Affairs Commission’s records that NG Eagle was incorporated on 11th July 2019 with AMCON’s employee, Mr Kamilu Omokide (Arik Receiver Manager) as Shareholder/Director and AMCON as second shareholder with other AMCON employees as Directors. This is a breach of fiduciary duties to Arik by Kamilu Omokide and AMCON
Alhaji Kuru also deliberately omitted to state in the reference interview that the registration, establishment, and expenses for the NG Eagle AOC was funded from Arik sales proceeds. The buyer of the NG Eagle, who Mr Kuru camouflaged as investor, is Alhaji Abdul Ahmad, an acquittance of Alhaji Kuru and bureau de change operator, selling foreign exchange to Arik in Receivership. This is a clear breach of public assets disposal process. NG Eagle was sold on 20th February 2023, after a date had been reserved for judgment in the matter of Arik Shareholders Vs Kamilu Omokide, AMCON, NG Eagle & Ors at the Federal High Court Lagos. Alhaji Kuru also recently misled the former Acting CBN Governor to grant a waiver for the lease and use of the Arik aircraft by the same NG Eagle without informing the former Acting Governor of CBN of a subsisting order of the court.
The Federal High Court sitting in Lagos recently ruled that the set-up of NG Eagle and transfer of assets of Arik Air to the said NG Eagle is illegal, null, and void. The court also ordered AMCON, and its Receiver Manager to file audited accounts of Arik Air from 9 February 2017 with the Corporate Affairs Commission within 14 days of its judgement on 31 March 2023. Though AMCON used the law courts to obtain exparte order to take-over Arik, AMCON disobeyed the same courts when ordered to file audited accounts.
Job Losses/ Capital Erosion-
Contrary to job savings claimed by Mr Kuru, over 3000 direct Arik highly trained employees have lost their jobs since AMCON take-over. What an achievement for AMCON that claimed it got the best turn around Managers in aviation to run Arik in Receivership!!! This is aside from the spare parts inventory of Arik valued at over USD150M that has been significantly depleted to less than USD15M. That Mr Kuru could claim saving jobs and the economy of Nigeria call to question the quality of his judgement.
Accountability –
It is unfortunate that AMCON and its Receiver Managers that cannot file the audited accounts of the airline with the corporate affairs commission as ordered by The Federal High Court, is calling for resolution. The question is, what will form the basis for this resolution?
It is unfortunate that Alhaji Ahmed Kuru’s 8-year tenure as the Managing Director of AMCON in a national role that should be developmental turned-out to be a season of disruption of businesses In Nigeria. This resulted in hundreds of thousands of job losses in Nigeria, capital and businesses capacity deficits and unprecedented economic setbacks, steep decline on foreign direct investments in Nigeria and loss of confidence in the country.
We, the shareholders of Arik are willing and ready for an open dialogue with AMCON in the presence of the relevant authorities including such as Police, EFCC, the CBN, the Ministries of Finance, Justice, and Aviation & Aerospace.
We come to equity with clean hands and ask that AMCON do the same.
The Shareholders of Arik Air Limited.
•Johnson Arumemi-Ikhide, chairman of Arik Air
