• Fact-finding team to visit site of demolished buildings
House of Representatives Committee Chairman on Aviation, Nnolim Nnaji has condemned the picketing of Air Peace Airline’s counters in Lagos on Wednesday by the officials of the Nigeria Labour Congress, (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress, (TUC) to disrupt Owerri flights.
The workers’ action which was in retaliation to the last May Day face-off with the Governor of Imo State Hope Uzodinma resulted in the inability of the Imo workers to observe this year’s labour day celebrations.
Nnaji expressed shock that a matter that happened in Owerri could cause the leadership of trade unions to invade Nigeria’s premier gateway, the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, (MMA), Lagos.
The House of Representatives, Committee Chairman on Aviation emphasized that airports are security zones that shouldn’t be exposed to such unnecessary breach, adding that the action of the workers could affect the certification of the airport.
He also reminded the workers that the newly promulgated Civil Aviation Acts Sections 40 and 41, have categorised them under essential service providers stressing that by the new Acts, dialogue has become their only means of resolving disputes.
Nnaji equally expressed concerns over the hardships the Airpeace passengers had to go throughp and the attendant losses the airline incurred as a result of the ugly incident.
He added that it was important for the workers to appreciate the challenges confronting the industry especially the airlines noting that the loss of over N700 million claimed by Air Peace due to the action was regrettable.
He urged the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, (FAAN) management to put up measures that would checkmate such occurrence in future even as he counselled the unions to avoid carrying out their grievances to airports in future.
Meanwhile, the committee will today conduct a fact-finding visit to the Runview, Ajao Estate Lagos where FAAN in collaboration with the Lagos State Government commenced demolition of houses allegedly obstructing safety and security of flight operations.
The committee had on Wednesday summoned the management of FAAN following the uproar generated by the demolition of the buildings initially perceived to be the handwork of the Lagos State government.
Nnaji had in his opening remarks stressed that, “the Committee’s summoning of the FAAN is in consonance with our roles as Parliamentarians. We represent the people and whatever affects the people must demand our immediate response.”The committee wants to know what the issues are and why FAAN had to take the steps it took and why the authority had to wait this long before carrying out the action.”
Managing Director of the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Captain Rabiu H. Yadudu had explained that the demolition of houses at the Runview Estate in Ajao Estate Lagos were based purely on security and safety concerns.
He further explained that there were a total of 254 houses within the airport land which were classified as illegal structures which notices of demolition were served on the owners way back in 2008.
The FAAN chief executive also told the committee that the authority set up a joint committee with members drawn from his authority and the representatives of the estate which came with the conclusions that 34 out of the 254 houses must give way immediately in the interest of safety and security of flight operations.
He added that the 34 houses marked for immediate demolition were either on aviation fuel pipelines or obstructing the surveillance of the perimeter fencing of the airport while some of them exceeded the required height limit.
FAAN management equally informed the House that it approached the Lagos State government in September 2022 to assist it in the demolition exercise because the authority didn’t have the requisite equipment to carry out the demonstration by itself.
He noted that the request was passed to the state’s development control which carried out its own investigation on the matter before it began the exercise on the April 30, 2023.