THE Minister of State for Transportation (Aviation) Mr. Felix Hassan Hyat yesterday bemoaned the N206 billion expended by the Olusegun Obasanjo administration in the aviation sector saying Nigerians did not get value for the money spent.

Hyat testifying before a Senate Committee bemoaned the annual remittance of N25 billion from the country by British Airways which he said had developed the Lagos/Abuja to London route as its most profitable in the world.

Hyat who testified before the Senate Ad Hoc Committee on the utilization of funds in the Transportation sector during the last administration also disclaimed Federal Government equity in Virgin Nigeria.

Responding to questions from the Senator Heineken Lopkobiri led Committee on whether Nigerians have gotten value for the money so far spent on the aviation sector, the Minister said the aviation sector should have been in a better shape given the amount of money sunk into the sector by government in the last nine years.

He said, "N206.540 was sunk into the aviation sector from 1999 to date giving an average investment of N22.95 billion per annum with about 89 percent coming from internally generated revenues."

"Within the same period, N183.895 billion was generated as internal revenue, while the sector expended N179.9 billion. N2.29 billion out of this went into the national treasury by the sector.

"With the current state of aviation sector, I believe that the value that Nigerians have gotten would have been better than what is on ground currently. What I am saying is that the value is not up to the money spent."

Speaking further on the general decay in the sector, Mr. Hyat noted that even though there has been improvement in release of budget for implementation by current administration, a lot cannot be done because most of the infrastructure in the nation's airports have collapsed.

He added that Nigeria has about 22 airports with only five functioning. Yet those five cannot compare to world standard due to obsolete equipment.

Referring to the Abuja airport which was commissioned twenty years ago, he said:

"I can tell you that since 20 years the airport has been running on generators (and) it is only in May of this year that we succeeded in getting dedicated power line. So you imagine the utilization of diesel and other lubricants in the airport on daily bases.

"When you go to Murtala Muhammed airport in Lagos the same scenario we are facing in Abuja is there. At that time, 30 years ago nobody can say the volume of traffic has remained static. And that is why we are having over utilization facilities in the airport. All the facilities have aged, they cannot cope up with the number of international airlines and passengers that are coming to Nigeria.

"Even if there is a power line in Lagos the epileptic power situation in the country has made us to reach a stage where we have to depend more on the generators rather than national grid which has become issue of standby," adding that 22 airports in the country were currently being run on generators.

The Minister disclosed to the Committee that Virgin Nigeria was not a national carrier but a flag carrier as he said that the Federal Government was not a participant in the equity arrangement of the airline.

"As at the time the agreement was signed it was done hurriedly because of the situation on ground then. Nigeria has no share in Virgin Nigeria, it is owned 49% by Richard Branson and 51% by Nigerians," but he did not give the identity of the Nigerian investors.