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The Airline Operators in Nigeria have been criticised for calling for the confirmation of the acting Director-General of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, Capt Chris Najomo.
The AON, in a statement jointly signed by its Vice President and spokesperson respectively, Allen Onyema, and Prof Obiora Okonkwo, wants Najomo confirmed upon claims that his administration is the best in the aviation industry.
This crisis has been rocking the NCAA over who occupies the office of the substantive DG of the regulatory authority.
PUNCH reports that there has been tension within the NCAA over the past nine months, although now heightened, due to a leadership dispute between Capt Musa Nuhu, who was appointed substantive Director-General of the NCAA by former President Muhammadu Buhari in 2019, and Capt Chris Najomo, who was appointed as acting DG of the agency by President Bola Tinubu in January 2024.
Until his appointment, Nuhu was Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the International Civil Aviation Organisation. He had worked at various times at the defunct Nigeria Airways, Aero Contractors, and Petrowest, among others.
When the new administration under the current Minister for Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, emerged the DG was suspended for alleged corrupt practices.
The ministry, in a release, noted that Nuhu would be handed over to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission for further investigation.
Pending the determination of Nuhu’s fate by EFCC, Najomo was asked to take over in an acting capacity and that has been the situation at the NCAA. This situation seems to have caused division among the workforce of the agency as random off-record discussions with some of them showed this division.
While many believed that Nuhu was only thrown under the bus to pave the way for the minister’s loyalist, some others believed that Nuhu should be changed to cause a fresh breath in the agency.
Meanwhile, since the Nuhu case has been announced to have been transferred to the anti-graft agency, nine months ago the EFCC has not made any public statement on the matter. Sources within the EFCC hinted to our correspondent that no such case file has been sighted.
Efforts to get the official state of the investigation from the spokesperson of the EFCC, Dele Oyewale, proved abortive, as he neither picked up repeated calls from our correspondent nor responded to text messages of inquiry on the matter.
However, in their statement, the vice president of the AON and Owner of Air Peace said the coming on board of Najomo into the NCAA has revolutionised the sector as it has ensured the safety of aircraft and passengers right to topical issues that airlines and airports workers take seriously.
Onyema also commended President Bola Tinubu for the wisdom in appointing Najomo and the Minister of Aviation, Festus Keyamo, to superintend over the sector in the country, those they said have caused the global aviation community to respect Nigeria.
He said, “This is a man who has come into the industry; he is not a novice at all. This is one of Nigeria’s finest pilots ever created under the sun, quote me, Captain Chris Najomo is one of the most proficient pilots under the sun not just Nigeria. He has paid his dues.
“Not only that, he has also paid his dues in airline management, don’t forget that he was once the Managing Director of an airline. So he knows the pains of the operators. On the other side too you need to go to NCAA. When you go to the NCAA today, the people are full of smiles because of Najomo. This is the kind of thing nobody should pray to lose. If we take it for granted we will get our fingers burnt.”
On his part, Obiora said “I want to say that Captain Najomo is a blessing to the aviation industry. During his citation, he was called jolly papa, that was then but today I seek your indulgence to rebaptize him as aviation papa.
“Sometimes there are appointments that are round pegs in a round hole. The problem sometimes is not about the regulations; the problem could be who is implementing the regulations. Someone might be in that office and proposing laws out of his sentiments but it is a different thing when you have somebody who is an all-rounder in the industry.”
Aside from the AON fronting for Najomo, our correspondent learned that at least five aviation professionals, including a staff of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, are canvassing for the position of Director-General of Civil Aviation.
Some of those lobbyists include a senior staff in the Directorate of Operations, Licensing, and Training Standards of the NCAA, while two senior staff of indigenous airlines are also seeking the same position.
Meanwhile, the International Civil Aviation Organisation’s Working Paper Assembly – 39th Session Resolution XX/1, kicked against conflicts of interests or lobbying in civil aviation.
The working paper holds that conflicts of interest may hamper effective, independent, and impartial safety regulation of civil aviation and thereby pose risks to the safety and security of international civil aviation.
The paper reads partly, “Recalling the item “Consideration of Guidance on Conflicts of Interest” was added to the General Work Programme of the Legal Committee by the 37th Session of the Assembly and subsequently was endorsed by the Legal Committee, the Council, and the 38th Session of the Assembly, which elevated its priority;
“Aware that under the United Nations Convention Against Corruption adopted by the General Assembly on 31 October 2003, States have the obligation to endeavour to adopt, maintain and strengthen systems that promote transparency and prevent conflicts of interest.
“Considering that ICAO guidance material identifies the need for States inter alia to establish a strategy to mitigate potential issues arising from conflicts of interest in civil aviation; and Convinced of the need for States to share information concerning policies and measures used to detect, avoid, mitigate and manage conflicts of interest in civil aviation.”
Also contacted for comment, industry expert, John Ojikutu, expressed anger over the move by the AON. The expert described such a move as an attempt to compromise safety, insisting that calling for a preferred regulator is an avenue to have a regulator that takes his eyes off operators’ wrongdoings.
He said, “That is wrong. They want to compromise safety. Operators particularly the AON must desist from soliciting for their choice into the headship of the Authority on Safety, Security and Economic Regulations Oversight and Enforcement.
“This public request is a call and a choice for compromising non-compliance on Regulations. A similar act by American Airlines in the mid-90s caused the US Government to excuse Avsec from the US FAA to form the TSA when it was discov¬ered that the Airlines were the major sponsors and the Oracles of the FAA public engagements. This is an affront that has never happened in this sector in Nigeria, that is bad.”
In his view, an aviation analyst, Charles Amokwu, also rebuked the AON describing their move as constituting “conflicts of interest” in civil aviation.
Amokwu emphasised that the office of the DG NCAA is supposed to be a professional position and not political, warning that such a call may ridicule the country’s aviation industry in the comity of nations.
He further said such open lobbying negated the International Civil Aviation Organisation’s (ICAO) Working Paper Assembly – 39th Session Resolution XX, which kicked against conflicts of interests.
“Where in the world do operators determine who their regulator is going to be? That’s an open conflict of interests. If Najomo’s name is sent to the President, the President approves, he submits his name to the Senate for approval, and he sails through, what is he going to give them in return for getting him the job?
“The office of the DG is supposed to be a professional position, not political as we are seeing it now. You can go behind to lobby, not openly. There is an ICAO paper on the issue of conflict of interest and regulatory affairs of state. This is a direct conflict of interest and this would put Nigeria in a bad state in the international community.
“What we need to understand is that a nation doesn’t exist in isolation. Aviation is international and every country must comply with international standards and recommended practices. This is completely from the recommendation of ICAO. If they want to lobby, let them do it discreetly and not brazenly as they are going about it. Nigeria is a member of ICAO and we must comply with what ICAO is doing,” Amokwu insisted.
Meanwhile, speaking during an interview on Channels TV on Sunday, the aviation minister said the President will make the final decision as regards the leadership tussle at the NCAA.
While dispelling that there may be a political undertone in the matter Keyamo said, “There is no politics in the matter, the President will make the final decision.”
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