Minister, airlines operators clash over NCAA board composition

The Airline Operators of Nigeria and the Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, clashed at the Senate on Monday when the aircraft owners sought the inclusion of their members on the board of the National Civil Aviation Authority.

The Minister and the AON representatives, Chinasa Unaegburam, tackled each other at the opening of a three-day public hearing on the six executive bills meant to reorganise and restructure the six agencies in the aviation sector for efficiency and growth.

Unaegburam had proposed an amendment to Section 5 of the NCAA Act to make provisions for AON members on its board.

She said, “They (AON) are people who are operating the airlines and they can give a perspective of policies.

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“If we have a member of AON on the board, we can give a perspective particularly in the instance where the NCAA is going to be the sole regulatory body.

“If there is a member from AON, it is not going to change the policy but it is going to give an insight from the operator view.

“We are moving forward so we want to move the sector forward. It is something that we should consider.”

The AON also sought an amendment to Clause 23 of the NCAA Act, seeking a reduction of the 5 per cent contract and service charge.

She also sought the removal of the two-year imprisonment on non-remittance of charge as contained in the proposed NCAA bill under consideration.

Trouble started when the Minister interjected and told the gathering that the AON could not speak on the occasion because there is a litigation it was battling with in court.