As the occupation of the headquarters of Aero Contractors by its workers over the suspension of scheduled flights entered the third day yesterday, the federal government assured the workers that none of them would lose their jobs as plans are afoot to restructure the airline.
The Minister of State for Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, made this known when he addressed workers of the airline at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.
Sirika told the workers that the federal government would ensure that the problems plaguing the airline are solved, noting that it is the responsibility of government to create jobs and, therefore, would not allow any business concern to die under its watch.
The minister, who identified some of the challenges before the airline, announced that he would meet with the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) and management of Aero Contractors, and that he would get back to the workers during the week.
He said: “I landed from Riyadh to Lagos, and before I left Riyadh, I was informed by the people in charge in Aero that things were getting worse and they have only one airplane in operation at the moment. I said to myself: since I have time between my flight to Lagos and the connecting one to Abuja, I decided to come and see Aero and probably discuss a few issues with the managers and possibly see the staff. Unfortunately, I came here and saw that there is a protest going on, so I had to stop by, listen, discuss and come to an agreement.
“The primary purpose of government, especially this APC government, is to help to promote, nurse, sustain, develop, keep businesses, so that they can continue to provide services and employ our people. So it is not the government of APC that will kill jobs and close down shops; our intent is to promote jobs and promote businesses in Nigeria so that businesses will be growing.”
Sirika said the workers had the right to protest because they could not just be relieved of their jobs. He assured them that the government would resolve the issues concerning the airline to put it back on track. “I think the protest is justifiable, and I agree with the issues raised but we will look into it and come up with a solution that will be mutually beneficial to all of us: the staff, the company and the government itself. I have appealed to the staff and they have agreed that we will reconvene here on Monday and listen to each other and also develop a road map and agree on what to do to rejuvenate the airline, being a premier company in this country.”
He also observed that although AMCON took over the airline because of the toxic loans it owed banks, the decision of the government agency was not out of place as its mission was to sustain the airline, adding that now that it is under threat, government would ensure that the airline was revived to continue to serve the public and keep its workers.
Sirika said: “I think what is going on now started sometime ago. The reason why AMCON came to rescue Aero Contractors or any other business was due to the wisdom of the government of the past, and we respect that wisdom and because AMCON is constitutionally established by the Act of Parliament to take this responsibility. But in doing this job, we must look at the fundamentals. So if there is a problem of this nature, we must look and find out what is happening. We are aware of the problem of the legacy, we are aware of the management problems and we are aware of where the planes are and we are also aware of what has been going on with maintenance. So we will try to resolve these problems.”
Meanwhile, aviation unions, Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (ATSSSAN), National Union of Air Transport Employees (NUATE), and other workers of the company have asked the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to investigate the dealings of the Assets Management Corporations of Nigeria (AMCON) in the airline, saying its mismanagement of the airline’s funds and corruption by its staff was responsible for the eventual comatose state in which the airline has found itself.
Speaking in Lagos, Comrade Benjamin Okewu, President of ATSSSAN, said before the AMCON intervened in the airline, it had about 13 aircraft, but has been reduced to one after the corporation took over 65 percent management of the airline.
He said apart from the mismanagement of funds on by the legacy shareholders, Okewu alleged that the representatives of AMCON on the board of the airline may have committed more, adding that rather than save the situation when they came, they compounded it.