By Sade Williams
The new management of Arik Air has appointed KPMG, world-class financial experts to undertake a forensic and diagnostic audit of the finances of the airline to ascertain the true status of its finances.
According to a statement from the airline, the review will among other objectives cover the position of assets and liabilities, and their utilisation; recording and utilization of loans, propriety of third party transactions; fraud controls over Procure to Pay (‘PtP’), Agents and Business Partners and Financial Reporting and Arik Airline’s financial position as at January 31, 2017.
The report is expected to be delivered within 12 weeks.
“We have hired KPMG to look into the financials of Arik with a tooth comb and advise us with verifiable facts on what went wrong with the airline. We need to do that because the outcome will help us plug the loopholes and stabilise the airline.
“The whole intention is to identify what went wrong with Arik to enable the new management to bring it back to full operations”, the statement reads.
The federal government intervened last Thursday February 9, 2017 in the airline following daunting complaints of huge indebtedness of the airline to various creditors and the frequent interruptions in its operations, and the concern to safety and security.