NLC Supports National Carrier, Dismisses Concessioning Of Lagos, Abuja Airports

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), has thrown its weight behind the federal government over the establishment of national carrier.

Speaking, when he visited one of the aviation unions in Lagos, yesterday, the newly elected President of the NLC, Comrade Joseph Ajaero, emphasized that establishing a national carrier was long overdue but due process must be followed, saying the country cannot continue to depending on foreign carriers.

According to him, the country cannot be supporting foreign airlines to rip off the country at the detriment of its local airlines.

“We would demand as a matter of right a National Carrier, Nigeria must have a National Carrier, you mentioned here, air, land and sea, we cant be depending on foreign carriers. At a stage trying to give them subvention and we keep on mouthing that government has no business in business and government now has business in another person’s business and if an individual is running an airline, government will be giving individual money to survive but government can’t use debt money to run it owe business.”

He, however, assured the union not to fret over the proposed concession of the five major international airports in the country and planned demolition of the office buildings of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and others in Lagos to pave way for the airport city project called Aerotropolis.

According to him, the planned demolition was a joke of the century, saying it was dead on arrival.

“I don’t think any human can concession here without paying entitlement. Any body that takes over here as a concessionaire is spending money for nothing. We have pass through privatization and so we know how it works and we know the dangers, so they are joking.”

‘I equally saw the Minister of Aviation talking about illegalizing the unions in the aviation and that is the highest joke of the century because he doesn’t have such powers. Don’t listen to anybody that is telling you he wants to take over the aviation industry, he can’t without following due process. You can’t shave somebody’s hair in his absence, you can’t say that you concession here and there, there can’t be an abortion without pregnancy, things must follow due process, that is the way it is, so nobody should panic.”

The NLC President, however, condemned the failure of the Aviation Minister, Senator Hadi Sirika,  to inaugurate Boards of all the Aviation Agencies, adding that, all contacts awarded and appointments made are illegal, null and void.

Comrade Ajaero who expressed surprised that there was no board  in the different agencies, saying that had led to some strange practices in the sector such as the appointment of some persons from outside the aviation industry to head some directorates.

The NLC boss advised all the aviation unions to work together to achieve their goals. 

“That does not allow growth of career civil servants in the system. All these issues would have been addressed by the board assuming it was in place,” he stated.

“The issue of interim board is an illegality, an interim Board is not the same thing as a Board. A properly constituted board by the Act and even in the Act, you see people who are supposed to be the Board members and their responsibility. 

If anybody, is running his office, his wife, his children, his PA as a Board, he can’t take over the responsibility of a properly constituted board and until that is done, he can’t even take any major decision including concessioning decision. So, whatever they might have done as at now is void ab-nitio, it’s void ab-nitio so, it is good we understand it.”