Business Briefs
By Solomon Ibharuneafe & Fola Adekeye
Monday, February 07, 2005
Why Aviation may not grow in Nigeria
By Solomon Ibharuneafe
The National Union of Air transport Employees, NUATE, is not taking the huge indebtedness of airline operators to the various parastatals in the aviation industry lightly. The union has taken the matter to the court of public opinion. The debts arising from passenger service, ticket sales, and local navigational charges, are capable of stunting the growth of the industry.
Imonitie Itua, national president of NUATE, said the refusal of the airlines to pay the charges was unethical and posing threat to the continued employment of its members. He condemned the continuous subsidy the parastatals give to the airlines especially in this present days of market-driven and deregulated industry. "There is no reason why the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria, FAAN, Nigeria Airspace Management Agency, NAMA, Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA and the Nigeria Meteorological Services, NIMET, should continue to subsidise the operations of private airlines in a market-driven and deregulated industry," Itua said.
According to the labour leader, all necessary legal means would be employed to enforce compliance and prompt payment of accrued and subsequent bills by the recalcitrant airlines.
No, Not Anymore
By Fola Adekeye
Currency Dealers at both local and international wings of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, have taken far-reaching steps to prevent the recurrence of the November 21 tragedy. On that fateful day, two currency dealers - Dankaka Zaria and Alhaji Hashimu - were hacked to death in a hotel room while trying to change a CFA equivalent of $15, 000 for an unidentified customer.
One of the preventive steps taken to avert such tragedy is the outright cancellation of all forms of hotel and out-of-station services. "We are no longer honouring calls from hotels or any place outside our offices. We have fixed 6.30 pm as our closing time and anybody having one or two reasons to extend his services beyond that time must write and obtain permission from the airport police. There are more than 30 policemen to enforce the new decisions," said Yahaya Dabi, chief executive officer of Dabi Bureau De Change, Ikeja, Lagos.
Dabi, however, appealed to the Inspector-General of Police, to apprehend the killers of Dan Zaria and Hashimu to sustain their confidence in his men. "I beg our Inspector General of Police in the name of Allah to bring the killers of Dan Zaria and Hashimu to book. The best way to curb crime is by dealing decisively with criminals such as these murders on the run. The police are the hands of government that are long. No criminal should escape the long hands of the law," he told Newswatch.
Aero's International Routes
By Solomon Ibharuneafe
Aero Contractors one of the designated airlines celebrated its first 100 days of flying international route last week. Koen Neven, the managing director of Aero Contractors said the passenger traffic had improved steadily. He listed the company's international route network as Malabo, Lome, Cotonou, Sao Tome and Accra.
Koen was full of praise for the government for granting the airline the right to fly such international routes which were hitherto reserved for government airlines. He said though the airline had to invest almost 50 percent of its revenue in marketing and advertisement to create awareness, the investment was worthwhile.
Against the background of the increasing demand for air transporation in Nigeria, Aero Contractors became a scheduled airline in August 2000, and adopted the name Aero. Today the airline operates scheduled passenger services with the Bombardier Dash-8 series 300 aircraft between Lagos, Warri and Port Harcourt. The company's fleet currently consist of three Dash-8, four Dauphin N, six Dauphin N2/N3, six Skiorsky S76 helicopter and three 737-300 commercial jets among others.
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