Nigerian Aviation Workers Give Govt 15-day Ultimatum to Halt Planned Concession

Aviation workers under the aegis of the Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (ATSSSAN); the National Union of Air Transport Employees (NUATE) and the Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP) have given the federal government 15 days to jettison the planned concession of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos and three other major airports in the country as well as also disband the Transactional Advisors meant to concession the airports.

The workers threatened to paralyse the aviation industry indefinitely if the federal government continues with the planned concession, which they insisted was insincere and self-serving.

Speaking in a press conference in Lagos on Tuesday, the General Secretary of NUATE, Olayinka Abioye, alleged that the federal government, through planned concession, wants to sell the nation’s airports to already designated companies without open bidding or transparent process.

The workers said there is alternative and more workable solution to the management of the airports, adding that the planned concession under the Public, Private Partnership (PPP) cannot work under the “insincere” disposition of successive governments that have not shown commitment and sincerity in the management of airport facilities.

The workers said a more workable alternative should be the commercialisation of FAAN, noting that the agency has not been able to meet the expectations of Nigerians because of government’s interference and erosion of its activities through policy summersault.

“Nigerian aviation workers have critically analysed the PPP concept as a veritable vehicle to drive the process of engendering revenue growth, quality service delivery and maintenance of facilities, infrastructures and returns on investment and accepted its workability, if driven with good intentions and in a transparent manner.

“Unfortunately for us and given the penchant with which our political class makes pronouncements without deep thoughts, we became deeply worried and hugely concerned about the haste, hush-hush and secret disposition of the minister in actualising this contraption without following due diligence as practiced worldwide while we also observed with grave concern, the deceit and coercion that goes with the current process of concessions, that is lacking in transparency which is hugely required at this moment,” Abioye said.