The Oyo and Anambra state governments have commended Air Peace for its ‘N o city left behind’ programme, which links different parts of the country by air.
The Governor of Oyo State, Seyi Makinde, who welcomed the airline when it made its scheduled flight operations to Ibadan Airport, said the coming of Air Peace to the state was a big relief to the teaming city travelers as the airline has immediately “crashed the airfare from Ibadan to Abuja to affordable level”.
Governor Makinde said the state would make the route an economically viable one for the airline.
“The coming of Air Peace will strengthen and enhance the economy of the state. We have a dry Port here that will facilitate the clearing of goods in record time. This will take the stress off importers in the state and neighbouring states and save them the stress of going to Lagos port to clear goods”, the Governor said.
Speaking, the Chairman and CEO of Air Peace, Allen Onyema, promised to link Ibadan to every geo- political zone of the country. He also said opening of the Ibadan route is part of the airline’s “no-city-left-behind” aimed at interconnecting various cities across.
Onyema said, “Plans are already on to commence Port Harcourt to Ibadan flights. Abuja, Ibadan to Kano flight is also already in the pipeline. I believe in the oneness of Nigeria. As a nationalist, I am going to connect all cities in the country.”
“I will link Ibadan to the South-South, South-East, North-East, North-West and every part of the country. I believe in the unity of the country”, he disclosed.
The Air Peace flight was received by the Olubadan of Ibadan, His Highness, Oba Saliu Adetunji at the Airport.
Other dignitaries who witnessed the inaugural flight included officials of the Oyo State Government, former National Assembly members, including Senator Kola Balogun and Chief Lekan Alabi, who delivered the Olubadan’s welcome address.
On its part, the Anambra State government has also commended Air Peace for connecting different cities in different parts of the country in the last few months with rapidity.
The latest operations were opened in Gombe and Ibadan, Oyo State, within a space of three days.
In a statement issued on Tuesday in Awka, the Anambra State capital, the government said it is proud of the “development record, the pan-African vision and commitment of the airline’s leadership, particularly its Chairman, Chief Allen Onyema, a worthy son of our great state”.
In the statement signed by the Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Mr. C. Don Adinuba, the government commended “the carrier for an aggressive route development programme when airlines across the globe are managing to remain afloat as a result of the Coronavirus pandemic which dealt a serious blow to not just the aviation sector but also the entire tourism industry.”
The Anambra state government said it was happy that the airline has renewed the acquisition of new aircraft and hoped that other airlines would also follow suit in order to be competitive.
“The use of Embraer E195-E2, known for excellent safety record, is most welcome.What is more, we are delighted to hear from people like Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State that the Air Peace operation in Ibadan has resulted in the crash of air tariffs in certain places, which is pleasant news to Nigerian travellers”.
Credit: This Day