Last Tuesday, September
13,2016, the Minister of State,
Aviation, Sen Hadi Sirika landed in Lagos from a trip and immediately moved to
settle a trade dispute between Aero Contractors and its workers. When he got to
the airline’s headquarters, the situation had even become worse as the workers
were on a protest, over the shutdown of operations amidst unpaid salaries by
its management.
But rather than beat a
retreat to take a rest on account of his long air journey, the minister
immediately rose to the occasion and resolved the ugly situation. He was not done yet, after leaving Aero head
office, he had to make a whistle stop over, to inspect the new, state-of-the
state airport terminal at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport ,Ikeja,
that is almost completed by the Chinese construction giant, CECC.
Then, back in his office
in Abuja, Thursday, barely two days later, he addressed a press Conference on
the topical issue of Concession and Public Private Partnership, PPP Policy of the
Buhari administration and inaugurated two key committees that would pilot the policy implementation
from take-off to ensure a safe landing.
At Aero Contractors
airline which is under receivership, Sirika had assured the protesting workers
that the Federal government would make sure that it addressed the problems
confronting the airline. He said that it was the responsibility of government
to create jobs therefore, the Federal government would not allow any business
concern to die under its watch.
Said Sirika: “The primary
purpose of government, especially this
All Progressives Congress, APC Government is to help to promote, nurse, sustain,
develop and keep businesses afloat so that they can continue to provide
services and employ our people. So it is not the government of APC that will
kill jobs and close down shops.” He assured the staff and management of the
airline that government would come up with a solution, which he said, “would be
mutually beneficial to all of us, staff, the company and government itself.”
Aero Contractors is under the management of
Asset Management Company of Nigeria, AMCON, a government agency set up by the
Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN to manage bad loan assets of Nigerian banks.
Sirika who is a
professional pilot and aviation expert, is so passionate about the growth of
the Nigerian Aviation industry. He understands first hand most of the
challenges facing the industry having been involved with the industry in the
past two decades both at a professional level and as a lawmaker in the National
assembly where he served in the Aviation Committee in the House of
Representatives and the Senate Committee on Aviation for some years.
Shortly after been named
Minister, Sirika was able to get government approval of duty waivers on
critical aviation equipment for domestic airlines. This policy would save
Nigerian domestic airlines that were paying at least 5 per cent import duty on
every spare part, about N26.5 billion per annum.
“This means the era of
Customs holding on to airlines’ spare parts has become a thing of the past. One
of the gains is that downtime will reduce because an airline can import an
engine and within a day clear it with
Customs and on the second day mount it on the aircraft and start operations, ”
said one industry official.
By the end of the year,
five new state of the art, world class international airport terminals at MMIA,
Abuja, Kano, Port Harcourt and Enugu are expected to be delivered to the
Federal Government by CECC.
He fulfilled his promise
to the aggrieved workers who agreed to sheath their swords when he returned
three days later to engage the Management of Aero, Labour Unions, Airline
Operators and Fuel Marketers and Aviation Correspondents in a marathon
engagement back to back.
Sirika first publicly
mooted the idea of airport concession which came as a surprise to many in the
industry, as a way out of inadequate government resources, several months ago.
The Minister has also
addressed some concerns of some stake holders over the concession arrangement.
”Contrary to the belief of many Nigerians, concession was not the same as
privatization. Concession and privatization are not synonymous,” Sirika said.
He explained that under
the concession arrangement, the ownership of the airports and other facilities
remain that of the Federal Government, which may not be so with privatization.
He also allayed the fears
of one of the labour unions in the aviation industry over fears that the
concession would lead to massive job losses in the aviation agencies.
Why concession? “Our infrastructure in aviation and
transportation is dilapidated. They are not ideal. They don’t attract
customers. They don’t show our nation to be in tandem with global happenings,”
the Aviation Minister said.
The period of preparation of framework for
Concession/PPP should not take too long.” Once we start, within 24 months ,we
should be able to have a new Lagos, Port Harcourt, Abuja and Kano airports, which
will create an opportunity that in establishing the national carrier, it will
create more jobs and facilitate trade and commerce,” Sirika said at the press
conference.
As a true democrat who
served as Secretary of the APC think-thank which mid-wived the administration
of President Mohammadu Buhari, Sirika spent the Saturday of 17th September in
yet another engagement cutting across the umbrella workers’ unions of Aero, FAAN and Tourism
practitioners under the auspices of NANTA.
This was preceeded by a major
development in the sector where the United Nations (UN) decided to set up two
Aviation Security (AVSEC) training institutes in the country. According to a
statement issued by James Odaudu, the
Assistant Director, Press and Public Affairs of the Ministry of Aviation. He
said: “The Federal government’s vision
and efforts towards turning around the aviation sector to meet global standards
in infrastructure, safety and security has continued to receive worldwide
acclaim at the highest level, with the United Nations decision to establish two
Aviation security training schools in Nigeria.”
Industry watchers believe
the UN’s decision also demonstrates the confidence of this respected
international organisation in the able leadership of Nigerian aviation by the Aviation
minister. There are also indications that the Aviation Minister may have been
working quietly for the re-election of Dr. Bernard Aliu, the Nigerian-born
Chairman of ICAO, the UN body that oversees the safety regulations of civil
aviation worldwide.
No doubt, Aliu’s re-election would be a plus
to the prestige, respect and influence of Nigerian Aviation industry worldwide.
Nigerian Aviation is expected to climb to new heights under the leadership of
Sen. Hadi Sirika as he takes Nigeria to the global scene.
Yakubu Dati is the General
Manager, Corporate Affairs, FAAN
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