Furore over Recent Appointments at NCAA
The recent appointment of directors in the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has elicited condemnation from aviation unions and other industry experts, who said that it negated industry principles in the appointment of technical personnel. Those opposed to the appointment insisted that some of the newly appointed directors do not have the technical experience and depth to sustain air safety and the high standard NCAA has maintained over the years that made Nigeria to earn the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Category 1 safety status and the overall 65 percent and 95 percent rating on safety from the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO). The federal government last month appointed new directors for NCAA. They are; Capt. Edem Oyo-Ita as Director of Air Transport Regulations; Mr. Abbas Sanusi; Director, Human Resources and Administration, Adamu Sani; Director of Finance and Accounts. Others are Odunowo Tayyib Adetunji, Director of Aerodrome and Airspace Standards, Mr. Ita Awak, Director of Airworthiness Standards and Lawrence Kwajok, General Manager, Air Navigational Standards. These appointments came after government had sacked about five directors in the agency that include Alhaji Salawu Ozigi (Director of Finance and Accounts), Aba Ejembi (Director of Administration), Benedict Adeyileka (Director of Airworthiness), Mr. Justus Wariya (Director of Air Transport Regulation), and Mr. Austin-Amadi Ifeanyi (Director of Human Resources). Last week, the AirTransport Service Senior Staff Association (ATSSAN), backed by the National Union of Air Transport Employees (NUATE), National Association of Airline Pilots and Engineers (NAAPE) and staff of the Nigerian Civil aviation Authority (NCAA) faulted the government for its decision to appoint directors, who they alleged, do not possess the prerequisite qualification and experience to hold the offices they were assigned. Specifically, they berated the federal government for recruiting outsiders who would be shown the ropes to fill all technical positions in the agency. Addressing the NCAA workers, the general secretary of NUATE, Mr. Olayinka Abioye alleged that the new director of finance and accounts, Ms. Bilikisu Adamu Sani is an educationist by training while the director of airworthiness standards, Mr. Ita Awak is a politician and therefore not qualified for those positions. “We have done a critical assessment of the newly appointed directors in NCAA and found that out of the five only three are qualified to hold the positions. I’m aware that the newly appointed director of airworthiness standards has been a politician through and through. Airworthiness directorate should not be joked with for it is a sensitive directorate; except you want aircraft to be falling from the skies. “The director of airworthiness standards is not suitably qualified; for 25 years he has never handled a spanner. He is not qualified and if you bring someone who is unqualified aircraft will start falling out of the skies. “The director of finance and accounts has a degree in education. She is not an accountant; she is not a financial guru. Anyone occupying the position should be grounded in accounting,” Abioye said. A former NCAA inspector who is now a civil aviation regulator in one of the African countries, toldTHISDAY that in order to maintain the safety status Nigeria has attained, it must bring in experienced experts to sustain what had been achieved; otherwise ICAO can degrade the country. “It is good to have qualified persons in such technical areas such as air worthiness director. If you don’t effectively regulate the industry, people will fly with expired licenses and ICAO can declare the Nigerian airspace unsafe because there is no effective regulation,” the industry expert said. Also, last Thursday at a forum organised by the Aviation Round Table (ART), a think-tank body in the industry, the former Director General of NCAA, Dr. Harold Demuren said for anybody to be appointed the Director of Airworthiness and Standards (DAWS), he must have done Airworthiness, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Courses and that of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO). The person, he said must also be current with the latest issues as they concern airworthiness and standards. Demuren cautioned the federal government to be weary of those it appoints as directors in NCAA in view of the role the regulatory body plays in the aviation industry. The former Director General of NCAA warned that if for any reason ICAO or FAA wants to audit Nigeria aviation today, the credentials of DAWS would be looked at. “The man who is going to issue aircraft airworthiness certificate must know what he is doing.You don’t learn on the job or table .He must be strong, competent and efficient. Has he done Airworthiness Courses, FAA and other courses? Outside Nigeria in ICAO and other international aviation gatherings, he is going to lead groups and this must be done professionally. If you do audit today on Nigeria aviation, they are going to look at the credential of DAWS.” Demuren therefore urged the federal government to be very careful when appointing people as top officials of the regulatory agency, especially when it has to do with safety.” He explained that such highly technical positions need experienced professionals who have been in the job continuously for years because “ministers could come and tell them to do things that negate safety but if the persons in-charge know what they are doing, they should be able to tell the minister it cannot be done in the interest of safety.” Meanwhile, the Minister of State, Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika has not reacted to these criticisms; but in reaction to the groundswell opposition to the appointments, some of the new appointees made open their curriculum vitae to show they are qualified for the positions. But some industry observers argued that if a qualified pilot operated for years and then left the industry and joined politics, you don’t call him back after 20 years and give him aircraft to operate. “You need a continuous working experience in the industry to do this job. That is why we advise they pick people from within rather that picking people from outside,” one of the industry observers said.