By Baron Ike
The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Air Peace airline, Allen Onyema on Wednesday told the House of Representatives that part of his reason form offering to evacuate Nigerians from South Africa was because he wants the world to see Nigeria as a nation.
Onyema spoke when he was received on Wednesday by Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila.
Onyema was invited to the green chambers and recommended for a national award, after he used his airline to freely evacuate Nigerians from South Africa, following the recent xenophobic attacks on Nigerians and other foreigners in the country.
He told the lawmakers who had muted the idea of recommending him for a national award that he never expected to receive a recommendation for a national award.
However, he said the invitation and recommendation moved him to tears, hence in his remarks, he thanked the lawmakers for the honour, adding that his actions were spontaneous and that he would do anything to evacuate even a single Nigerian.
Onyema said: “I did not do it spontaneously, nor did I do it for publicity, I had to mortgage my landing right in South Africa because I just got the landing right before the crisis.
“I did not give a damn, I never did, because I know that I will not go to heaven with any dime.
“I have never been so honoured in my life. You have brought tears to my eyes. I would not have been able to do this if the federal government did not allow me or assemble those people for me to evacuate.”
Earlier, Onyema told Channels Television in an interview that he is using his airline to freely evacuate Nigerians from South Africa because he wants the world to see Nigeria respected as a nation.
Speaking further in the interview, he noted that evacuation of foreigners from another country isn’t a good sign for the affected nation involved.
On Wednesday last week, the Air Peace airline evacuated 187 Nigerians who indicated interest to return home as a result of the xenophobic attacks on foreigners in South Africa.
Another set of about 320 people are expected to return to the country on Wednesday.
The trip earlier suffered a setback as a result of landing permit but the hiccup was sorted out on Wednesday morning.
Having resolved the issue and secured the permit for the plane to land in Johannesburg, Onyema said the South African authorities gave the airline an arrival time.
He insisted that it was not the first time he was making a contribution to the nation’s development and highlighted his role in restoring peace to the Niger Delta in the heat of militancy in the region.