The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Capt Hadi Sirika

  • Aviation union to FG: Halt airports concession plan

    Aviation union to FG: Halt airports concession plan

    The National Union of Air Transport Employees (NUATE), has urged the Federal Government to immediately halt its plan to concession the four major airports in the country.

    The union made this known in an eight-point communique issued at its National Executive Council (NEC) meeting held in Ilorin, Kwara.

    A copy of the communique which was signed by NUATE’s General Secretary, Mr Olayinka Abioye, was made available to newsmen in Lagos on Thursday.

    The Minister of State for Aviation, Capt. Hadi Sirika, had on Sept. 6, told newsmen that there was no going back on the concession of the Lagos, Abuja, Kano and Port Harcourt Airports.

    Sirika had argued that the move would ensure that the airports were properly managed, while the government would still retain their ownership.

    Abioye’s communique faulted the plan to concession the four airports which it described as the cash-cow out of the 22 airports owned by the Federal Government.

    “The NEC in-session therefore calls for immediate stoppage of the concession of Nigerian airports to avoid industrial crisis that may arise as the government has failed to carry along stakeholders on this germane matter,” he said.

    He urged the aviation agencies, including the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority and the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), to improve the welfare of their workers.

    Abioye’ also advised government to appoint a substantive managing director for NAMA and restructure its directorates in consonance with the provisions of the International Civil Aviation Organisation.

    On the state of the economy, the communique advised the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration to take more concrete steps toward alleviating poverty across the nation.

    “The NEC in-session sympathises with the government over the continued slide to recession of the nation’s economy but encourages it to remain focused in its quest for nation building.

    “This can be achieved by engaging more in social dialogue with critical stakeholders in the country and setting the machinery in motion to deploy experts into freeing our economy from the jaws of economic recession,” he added.

  • Aviation pensioners oppose planned concession of airports 

    Aviation pensioners oppose planned concession of airports 

    • Urges interested players to take up unviable airports

    Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP), the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) branch on Wednesday said that they are opposed to plans by the Federal Government to concede or privatise four viable airport terminals in Lagos, Abuja, Kano and Port Harcourt.

    The pensioners said it is against national interest to concession the four major airports as the persons or company to be contracted to handle these international airports could be hired or compromise to allow weapons into the country.

    Speaking at a briefing in Lagos, National Chairman of NUP, FAAN, branch Comrade Rasak Ope and the Administrative Secretary, Comrade Emeka Njoku said previous attempts by government to achieve any form of concession in the aviation sector has been fraught with controversies.
    They said rather than concession the airports, FAAN, should be allowed to run existing airports without interference.

    They said the last administration excluded FAAN from privatisation or concession based on security implications.

    They urged the Federal Government to give more priority to unviable airport rather than its planned privatalisation or concession of the viable airport terminals.

    They said since the minister of aviation, Capt Hadi Sirika  is determined to make the airports profitable, he should concentrate on unviable airports and make them viable.

    They explained that airports across the world represent a cardinal posture of any country’s sovereignty, hence handling them to individual or group of people pretended danger to the country.

    They said previous attempts to privatise some government entities, including PHCN, Ajaokuta Steel, NITEL and the Nigeria Airways did not yield the desired results.

    “How can we give out our national heritage to individuals to operate, thereby undermining Nigeria sovereignty, losing sight of security implications, which is supposed to be paramount in every sphere of any nation.

    “Therefore, airports should not be seen as buying and selling ventures, where profit should be the yardstick.

    “Airports represent public interest such as economic, social activities and international connections, from country to country and state to state,” they said.

    They further said: “Contracting airports to a person or company to handle the four major international airports could be dangerous as they interested parties could be  hired or compromise to  allow weapons into the country including people of in question unable characters in the world.

    “They can use this laxity to flock into the country and former trouble which can lead to barrage deaths of citizens or unrest.

    “Not at the time when Nigeria is still battling with Book Haram, agitation of state Biafra and militancy. Therefore, we should not open more ways for trouble in the name of ‘we want our airports to be more viable and put Nigerians into danger,” it said.

    “Who will be responsible for the assets and liabilities of FAAN?, Has the Act establishing FAAN been abrogated or amended by the National Assembly before such transformation take place?” It said.

    The union noted that FAAN had tried such concession in the past with Maevis on revenue collection and its experience was unpalatable.

    “We are strongly convinced that the same ventures are back with the same convincing proposals to the Ministers and at the end of the day, the concessionaires will disappoint and legal battle will commence.

    “The staff and pensioners will suffer while infrastructure will continue to dilapidate the more, passenger will groan,” they said.

    Meanwhile, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, (FAAN) has taken over Hometel Car Park close to the international wing of the Lagos Airport following what would seem like an unwillingness of the current concessionaires to remit funds collected on the authority’s behalf.

    This development came to light when the unions, last Thursday  took over the management of the car park from its concessionaire over allegations of non-remittance to FAAN for over two years.

    The unions also accused the management of the car park of lack of proper concessioning agreement with FAAN, saying that it signed and violated part of the Memorandum of Understanding, MoU, with the FAAN management, by unilaterally raising the car park fee from N200 to N500 per car without informing FAAN.

    It was learnt that Managing Director of FAAN, Engr. Saleh Dunoma on Monday backed the industry unions in its takeover of the Hometel Car Park due to the level of indebtedness and has ordered authority’s Legal Department to take a look at the Memorandum of Understanding, MoU, it signed with the owners of the company.

    The meeting to discuss the takeover of the car park held at the headquarters of FAAN in Lagos.

    On the side of the management were the Ag. Director of Commercial, Mr. Toyin Okpaise, General Manager, Rentals, FAAN, Deputy General Manager, Corporate Communications, FAAN, Mr. Onyekpere Nnaekpe and other directors in the agency.

    The unions were led by the President of Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (ATSSSAN), Comrade Benjamin Okewu, Secretary-General of National Union of Air Transport Employees (NUATE) Comrade Olayinka Abioye, Chairman and Vice-Chairman of NUATE, FAAN Branch among many others.

    At the meeting, which ran till evening on Monday, the unions specifically said that it would not allow the concessionaire to continue to render the service on behalf of the agency, describing it as a “chronic debtor.”

    Acting General Secretary of NUATE, Comrade Olayinka Abioye confirmed the development.

    Abioye revealed that the agency had ordered its legal department to look at the naughty areas in the MoU between the two parties, stressing that since its takeover, the staff had been generating enough revenues that would make the payment of salaries easier at the end of the month.

    He said, “We have resolved the matter and FAAN staff have taken over the control of the car park from Hometel. At the meeting, the Managing Director of FAAN, ordered the legal department to critically look at the MoU with the owners of the company.

    “The management supported the takeover of the car park. If you have a concessionaire that is not generating revenue as supposed to you, what will you do with such a company? It was a very reassuring meeting. We will generate enough revenues that will be enough for us to pay salaries at the end of the month.

  • Debt: Arik Air resumes claims payment of N18.9bn to FAAN

    Debt: Arik Air resumes claims payment of N18.9bn to FAAN

    Arik Air on Thursday claimed that it had paid a total sum of N18.9 billion to the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) from January 2007 till date.

     

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Managing Director of Arik Air, Mr Chris Ndulue, made the claim while briefing aviation correspondents in Lagos.

     

    NAN reports that the airline’s operations at the Murtala Muhammed Airport were disrupted on Wednesday by aviation unions and some FAAN workers, over its alleged N12.5 billion indebtedness to the agency.

     

    However, Ndulue, while apologising to the airline’s passengers for the inconveniences caused by the development, confirmed that Arik Air had resumed both domestic and international operations.

     

    He noted that it was very strange that while the airline’s records showed the payment of N18.9 billion, FAAN claimed that it received only N11.4 billion.

     

    According to him, every efforts have been made over the years to reconcile the disputed figures, including the setting up of a ministerial committee by the former Permanent Secretary of the aviation ministry, Mrs Binta Bello.

     

    Ndulue said while the committee was still trying to resolve the issue, FAAN instituted a suit against the airline in October 2015 at the Federal High Court, Lagos.

     

    He said FAAN again informed the court on Feb.3, 2016 that parties should be allowed to explore an amicable resolution to the dispute by appointing an independent auditor, to reconcile the figures.

     

    “So the issue of whether Arik Air is indebted or not to FAAN has been put before a competent court in a suit initiated by the agency.

     

    “For FAAN to resort to self-help or by its staff is an affront on the Federal High Court and the Nigerian State.

     

    “A situation whereby staff of FAAN and union members turn themselves into debt collection agents, on behalf of the Federal Government is absurd,” Ndulue said.

     

    Also speaking, the Chairman of Arik Air, Mr Arumemi Ikhide, confirmed that the airline’s management had met with the Minister of State for Aviation, Capt. Hadi Sirika, over the unions’ action.

     

    “We are prepared and want to pay for services rendered, but we will not be bullied. What happened yesterday (Wednesday) is not good for the image of the country,’’ he added.

  • Rehabilitate airports’ facilities, Union urges minister

    Rehabilitate airports’ facilities, Union urges minister

    The National Union of Air Transport Employees (NUATE) on Friday urged the new Minister of State for Aviation, Capt Hadi Sirika, to concentrate on rehabilitating infrastructure and facilities across the airports in the country.

    NUATE’s Acting General Secretary, Mr Olayinka Abioye, gave the advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos.

    Abioye said that facilities in some of the nation’s airports were also obsolete and needed upgrading in line with international standard.

    He said that the country could not be at par with the international community if the country’s point of entry were in an obsolete state.

    “We wish that the new minister of state for aviation will inspect the facilities and infrastructure at all the airports in the country,” he said.

    Abioye urged Sirika to ensure the completion of the ongoing construction of new airport projects in the country as a matter of urgency.

    According to him, the aviation minister should ensure stability and sustainability of the aviation industry as the industry still remains one of the engine rooms of the Nigerian economy.

    He said more foreign direct investment (FDI) would come into the country if Nigeria should put necessary infrastructure in place in the aviation sector.

    Abioye also called for the restructuring of the various aviation agencies and parastatals to enable them perform their statutory functions effectively.

    He said, “As I speak, there are more support staff than the productive ones in the industry.

    “This cuts across the parastatals and we need to look at a way to streamline this critical area for efficient delivery of aviation service to the airport users.”