May Day: Sirika Congratulates Aviation Workers, as NUATE Advises Him To Prepare Handover Notes

As workers in Nigeria join their colleagues in the rest of the world to celebrate Workers Day, Minister of Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika heartily congratulates workers in the sector for their daily contributions to the running and development of the industry.

According to the Minister, the lofty achievements recorded in the nation’s aviation sector wouldn’t have been possible without the commitment and personal sacrifices of employees in the different segments of the industry.

He particularly ascribes the near-total achievement of the aviation roadmap to the understanding and cooperation of the workers and hopes that the remaining parts will be achieved within the short period before the handover to the incoming administration.

He restates the commitment of the Buhari administration to the continued improvement of the welfare of aviation workers through regular, enhanced pay packages, provision of working tools and conducive work environments.

He further assures workers of his commitment to ensuring the implementation of the respective Conditions of Service of the agencies under the Ministry’s supervision and payment of the minimum wages as agreed with the Labour unions.

Sirika however expresses concern over the frequency of strikes in the industry which, more often than not, disrupt operations at the nation’s airports and which send wrong signals to the outside world about the safety of Nigeria’s airspace.

The Minister wishes all workers in the aviation sector a wonderful celebration.

Meanwhile, the National Union of Air Transport Employees (NUATE) has advised the outgoing Minister of Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika to prepare his handover note for the next administration.

NUATE pointed out that, it will do the industry a lot of good if the Honourable Minister joins other Ministers in preparing his handover note for the next administration to continue from where he has stopped.

Emphasizing that governance is a continuum, the union reasoned that, there is no wisdom in creating unnecessary bad weather in the industry at the twilight of his service through unneeded posturing over sundry unfinishable roadmap projects.

Speaking in his May Day address, President of NUATE, Comrade Ben Nnabue, on behalf of the union, urged the Minister not to carry out his threat of demolishing the office complexes of FAAN, NAMA and NCAA in Lagos to make way for an airport city.

According to the Labour leader, there is no time left for this administration to make an impact in that direction, and the excessive haste against time can only produce unpalatable outcomes.

” We must not fail to appreciate the leadership of the Aviation committees of the National Assembly for their swift intervention during the last industrial action against the demolition exercise. NUATE aligns with the position of the National Assembly”

“In the above regard, I wish to humbly urge the incoming government of Bola Ahmed Tinubu to carry out a forensic audit of the aviation road map projects, recast their general directions and re-present them for delivery. It is important to state that the road map projects are exceedingly vital to the growth of Nigerian aviation”.

Their delivery NUATE noted, should, therefore, not be undermined, just as they demanded that the projects be remoulded to be of benefit to all stakeholders and to fit the needs of the industry and national interest.

Comrade Nnabue however, noted that the footprints of the current administration are indelible in many largely positive transformations that have taken place in the agencies under the Ministry.

Commending the agencies, Nnabue stated that “Nigerian College of Aviation Technology (NCAT), Zaria has attained global excellence status awarded by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), and the College has now been accredited by the Nigerian Board for Technical Education (NBTE).

” The Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) has grown in leaps and bounds in modernizing its operations through significant acquisitions in radar, navigational aids, and air traffic control among others. The Accidents Investigation Bureau has transmuted from a unimodal accident investigation body for aviation alone to a multimodal body, extending its coverage to maritime and rail, and is now called the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB).

“The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has added brand new terminals to its fold, built new runways and repaired defective ones, tremendously improved airport lighting, and is positioning for greater heights”.

“The Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) is another agency that has had a meteoric transformation. From the accuracy of its weather predictions, through the greatly improved means of availing its services, to the widening of its services and beneficiaries, particularly farmers, it is all tales of achievement.