The Two-day Warning strike embarked on by aviation unions has ended today with the call on government to do the needful.
Members of the unions this morning gathered at the Strabag bus near the Murtala Mohammed Airport Terminal Two, MMA2 and in a procession matched down to the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, MMIA new terminal singing solidarity songs.
Flight operations both domestic and international were not disrupted but their activities led to slow movement of traffic.
There were heavy presence of men of the air force, police and army positioned in strategic locations around the airport to avert any breakdown of law and order.
Addressing the workers at the MMIA, Comrade Abdulrazak Saidu, Secretary General, Association of Nigeria Aviation Professionals, ANAP, emphasized that, the actions of the aviation minister in overseeing the industry had led to many crises in the system.
He cited corruption perpetuated by the minister with the absence of the governing board of directors nominated by President Buhari but not inuguarated by the minister.
”For the past 7 years, governing boards of directors in all the parastatals, none, we challenge the minister of aviation because Buhari administration nominated these boards but he refused to inaugurate them, why? to perpetuate corruption, we challenge him even to an open debate, this is one of the issues we are fighting”.
Deputy Secretary General, Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, ATSSSAN, Comrade Frances Akinjole said, with the end of the warning strike, the unions would sit down and restrategize for their next line of action if government fails to accede to their demands.
He listed them to include; release of the reviewed condition of service as negotiated, halt to demolition of agencies building and the implementation of the new minimum wage consequential adjustments and payment of arrears for NiMet staff.
”The CoS we have has expired about 13 years ago and the salaries and wages commission are sitting on it and to add insult on injury, the minister is bent on forceful relocation of our members and demolishing the headquarters of FAAN, NAMA and NCAA in Lagos, would we have regional offices in Lagos? The bulk of economy activities in Nigeria is in Lagos. Lagos airport is the hub in Nigeria. The AIB that was demolished over a year ago, what have they used it for? You see, we have a tranny of the people in authority, very, very few of them, that is what they are enjoying and that is why they refused to inaugurate governing board of directors for our parastatals. We are going to continue with this, after this warning strike, if they fail to heed to our demands, we don’t mind continuing with this until after the swearing in of the new administration”.
The Treasurer, National Union of Air Transport Employees, NUATE, Comrade Safiya Araga said, they have been pushed to the wall, they have been listening but the minister had failed to listen to them and it is unfair.
”We are not deterred, the ministry cannot threaten us with various press releases, we have rights to ask for our welfare. For upward of 13 years CoS are still lying down there, we have appealed, we have met several times committees to resolve these issues but we cannot be pinned down, we are asking all our demands be met”.
Secretary General, NUATE, Comrade Ocheme Aba said, with the warning strike concluded, they would wait for government to respond but if there is nothing positive regarding their demands, they will embark on an indefinite strike.
According to him, they have set Friday this week as deadline for government and its agencies to revert.
‘At this point we wait for government and its agencies particularly salaries, incomes and wages commission, the head of the civil service of the federation to do the needful in respect to the condition of service, outstanding 4 agencies and also the ministry of finance as regards payment of the consequential adjustments for NiMet and if we don’t get anything, instead of warning strike which had already been done, we will now have an indefinite strike. The format, shape of that strike, we will sit down and take a decision and we will wait till Friday this week and if don’t hear anything by Monday we will be meeting to decide our next line of action”.
