Gov. Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State on Thursday said the Federal Government’s transportation policy was geared towards the growth of the industry and job creation.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that El-Rufai made the assertion when he paid a courtesy visit to the corporate office of Arik Air in Lagos.
“Transportation is important. The Federal Government is aware of that and we need to all advocate for the creation of appropriate policy environment for the growth of the transportation industry.
“Aviation is a key part of that inter-modal system of transportation. The government is aware and it will do the right thing,’’ he said.
According to him, the purpose of the visit is to find out how the Kaduna State Government can partner with Arik Air, which is the largest indigenous airline operator in Nigeria.
The governor therefore, called for the resumption of Arik Air’s overnight flight to Kaduna which was stopped in September 2015 and also increased frequency in its flight operations to the state.
“We are trying as a state government to improve our economic environment by eliminating multiple-taxation by appointing a single agency to collect taxes on behalf of the state.
“We are focused on how many jobs we can encourage or create everyday,” he said.
Our visit is to further reassure you that we will continue to create a conducive environment for businesses to thrive,’’ El-Rufai added.
Responding, the Deputy Managing Director, Arik Air, Capt. Ado Sanusi, said aviation was the catalyst for economic growth of any state, adding that it was a key factor in transportation.
Sanusi assured the governor that Arik Air would soon resume its overnight flight and also increase its flight frequency to the state.
“Kaduna is an important market to Arik. It is one of the routes we started immediately the airline was formed,” he said.
According to him, the airline will continue to partner the government in various ways that will be mutually beneficial to both parties.
He, however, appealed to El-Rufai to prevail on the Federal Government to create policies that would support indigenous carriers and also address the infrastructure decay in most airports in the country. (NAN)