Visa Ban: "We used our discretion to allocate $265 million to the foreign airlines– Emefiele

The United Arab Emirates is contemplating a visa suspension due to airline funds locked in Nigeria, according to Central Bank Governor Godwin Emefiele.

During a Q&A session led by Femi Gbajabiamila, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr. Emefiele stated that the CBN released $110 million to international airlines in August and is scheduled to release an additional $120 million on October 31.

Recall that in the last few weeks, the gulf nation apparently ceased issuing visas to Nigerians.

Don't forget that the UAE government owns Emirates.

The CBN governor claimed that Nigeria has historically given foreign airlines priority when allocating foreign currency, and he added that rather than cooperating with the nation, some nations are threatening to expel Nigerians.

"You will be saying either you are cancelling your visa to Nigerians or that you will not fly again because your funds are blocked.

"We used our discretion to allocate $265 million to the foreign airlines, broken down into spot and forward. We did $110 million on the spot and the rest in 60days forward.

“On that day, we allocated to IATA $32 million through UBA. Qatar Airways, $22.8 million through Standard Chartered, Emirates, $19.6 million through Access Bank, British Airway; $5.5million through GTB, Virgin Atlantic, $4.8 million through Zenith and others,” he said.

Nigeria has no cause for concern about the visa ban, according to Rivers State politician Boma Goodhead. She claimed that Nigeria benefits the UAE more than it does.

According to her, if the UAE is permitted to remain for a year without Nigerian tourists, they will alter their thoughts.

The visa prohibition is unknown to Emirates, according to Paulos Legesse, the airline's manager for Nigeria, but the company will cease operations in Nigeria on October 28 due to its inability to recover its funds.

Source