Tension reigned across the country’s aviation sector yesterday when news filtered in that over 7,500 various cadres of aviation workers may be unexpectedly thrown into the labour market if the controversial report of Steve Oronsaye on the planned merger of three aviation agencies becomes a reality.
Throughout yesterday, temper was high among the various workers over what they described as the most unpleasant joke of the century.
The development came just as the proposed merger of the aviation agencies was said not to have been in the original report of the Oronsaye report but was smuggled in by unknown persons.
When Nigerian Tribune went round the industry yesterday, the information gathered was that if the report eventually becomes a reality, over 7,000 out of the 12,000 workers in the affected agencies might be fired while only those who are the core technical staff might be the lucky ones to remain in the new dispensation.
“So many of us may likely be sent out of the system if the Oronsaye report is allowed to go through. Apart from the negative effect the
merger will have on the entire sector, there will be job loss as the new system may not accommodate everybody” a source within the industry who spoke under anonymity, told Nigerian Tribune.
The affected agencies are; the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NIMET).
Presently, the staff strength in NAMA is put at 3,000 while there are over 8,000 workers spread between NCAA and NIMET.
The technical staff that may remain if the controversial report materialises include: air traffic controllers, aircraft engineers, aeronautical information officers, air traffic engineers and aircraft inspectors.
The fate of their counterparts from other departments such as public affairs, accounts, administrative, legal finance, among others are hanging.
As of the time of filing this report, the workers through the various aviation unions and professional bodies were seen holding series of meetings on how to resist the move.
Meanwhile, President Goodluck Jonathan has been urged to stop the proposed merger of the three aviation agencies.
Making the call yesterday was one of the aviation unions, the Nigerian Aviation Professionals Association (NAPA) which described the development as a wrong way of sustaining the United States Category One presently being enjoyed by Nigerians travelling to and from U.S.A.
Speaking through its General Secretary, Comrade Abdulrazak Saidu, NAPA said rather than merge the agencies, they should be allowed to statutorily function under the supervision and regulation of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) in terms of critical safety issues and the sustenance of Category One.
