Nigeria’s Med-View Airline under graft spotlight

Nigeria’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has confirmed it is investigating Med-View Airline (MEV, Kano) Chief Executive Officer Muneer Bankole in connection with the diversion of funds for Hajj operations.

Nigerian news reports said EFCC spokesman Wilson Uwujaren had confirmed Bankole’s was detained on January 31 at the anti-corruption watchdog’s head office in Abuja to answer questions relating to USD900,000 allegedly paid to him by the National Hajj Commission for the airlift of pilgrims in 2019. The contract allegedly was never executed.

Bankole was not immediately available for comment.

Med-View Airline in September last year was reportedly planning a comeback after a hiatus of more than two years. It is the only Nigerian carrier listed on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) but has been grounded since 2019 due to a lack of equipment.

The airline used to be a major player in the Hajj and Umrah markets, but the cancellation of the pilgrimage for two consecutive years by Saudi Arabian authorities due to COVID-19 negatively impacted its business.

Fuel supplier Asharami Synergy unsuccessfully filed a petition in the Lagos Federal High Court in 2020 for the liquidation of Med-View Airline over debts of NGN43.5 million naira (USD120,000).

Med-View’s last financial report posted on the NGX was its 3Q19 unaudited financial statement for the period ending September 30, 2019, which showed a NGN3.1 billion (USD8.6 million) cumulative loss for the nine months through September 2019, compared to a NGN1 billion (USD2.9 million) loss for the same period in 2018.