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Aviation unions in the country have called on President Bola Tinubu to cancel the ongoing concession process of airports across the country.
The union leaders while speaking at the freedom square at the headquarters of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria Ikeja, during their Congress, described the exercise as a deciet without carrying the workers along
President of National Association of Air Transport Employees (NUATE) Comrade Ben Nnabue called for restart of the whole process and allow for bids by interested organisations in a transparent manner.
“They should start afresh, so that the whole Nigerians that want to participate in the ownership of the airport will participate. And all the
airports have to come together, weigh them, know their value”.
Nnabue said the unions are are not aware of the process being used for the concession.
He called for the resolution of all labour issues before delving into concession adding that labour demands are not being attended to while the minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development Mr Festus Keyamo, has already announced that he has gotten approval from FEC to concession the Enugu airport.
“So we just want the world to know that before any concession can take effect, that the labour issues must be discussed and handled”.
He noted that the process is flawed from the appointment of the concessionaire till date as they are not aware of how and when the bid was advertised.
“The airport belongs to Nigerians. It’s a federal government structure or institution. So you cannot, at midnight, decide on who to give the airport to without declaring it open to all Nigerians”.
So we are demanding that they will cancel the concession process, advertise for the concession globally”
According to Nnabue this will ensure that all interested parties will
bid for the concession.
Also, the President General of Association of Nigeria Aviation Professionals (ANAP) Comrade Alale Adedayo,while addressing the workers condemned the way and manner
whole process of concession, was being executed by the minister without carrying them along despite his earlier promise to involve them in the process
Comrade Adedayo called for reversal of the concession process and make it to be transparent.
“Let t there be national dailies, advertisement,
then for good six months so that anybody that wants to bid will come, sit around the table with the staff and consider the staff welfare, the labor-related matters”
“Our members are not part of the committee, they dodged, they pushed us outside, they did not even call us for any meeting again.
Before you know it, they rushed down to the FEC and got their approval” .
“We have been sidelined. I’m telling you, we have been sidelined” .
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