The National Association of Nigeria Travel Agencies (NANTA), has said that the purported travel agent paraded by the Economic and Financial Crime Commission ( EFCC) is not one of its members and should not be addressed as a travel agent.

The association’s President, Mrs Susan Akporiaye who clarified the position of the umbrella body of travel trade operators in Nigeria, noted that all available verifiable information at the disposal of the association shows that the purported Kaduna-based travel agent has no relationship with the association and therefore, should not be so addressed.

Mrs Akporiaye, who spoke at the sidelines of the official opening of Travel Hub, a collaborative and one-stop facility geared towards providing operational environment for upcoming and registered operators stated that NANTA has invested time and money to address the various challenges posed by touts in the industry, and warned members of the traveling public to be circumspect when planning their trips and who to engage.

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“Before COVID, NANTA launched its membership identity card with security features that cannot be cloned and it behoves on the traveler to request for the identity profile of the travel professional before doing business. We frown hard at fraud in the sector and have taken critical measures to address it,” she said.

On measures to further check fake and fraudulent operators, Mrs Akporiaye disclosed that efforts are ongoing to educate and crate awareness among   security agencies on the measures put in place to muscle touts out of the system, adding that a recent visit to the office of the National law Drug Agency (NDLEA) was rewarding while a visit to EFCC, will be initiated in earnest.

“It kills and demoralizes the efforts of registered and genuine travel professionals when touts are labeled as travel agents. It is demeaning and we pray that the security agencies and the media should reach out to NANTA to verify such purported agent(s) before going public. We are ready to even disown our members who may run foul of the law and be seen to have defrauded any member of traveling public,” she added.