Aligbe: FCCPC probing airlines’ price fixing ‘ll eliminate anti-competition practices

…says agency acting within legal mandate

Aviation consultant and former spokesman for Nigeria Airways, Mr Chris Azu Aligbe, said the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), as an omnibus regulator, is covered by an Act that authorises it to probe multi-sectoral infringements of consumers’ rights.

He described those who hold the view that the agency has no business to probe alleged price fixing and exploitation of air travellers as ignorant, arguing that the commission had fined communication giant, MTN, for acting against the interest of its subscribers to the tune of $300 million and other firms that had been accused of consumer rights infringements.

Speaking to Aviation Metric at the weekend in his office in Lagos, Aligbe stated that the FCCPC is probing airlines it accused of price collusion and exploitation, and that a possible fine is being considered to ensure that it doesn’t happen.

“They give you examples in their findings, in their preliminary report. It is for you to defend yourself. What they are saying is that to this extent, you exploited the passenger, refund them their money. If airlines know that they will be forced to refund money, they will not do it again. It is because there have not been sanctions.”

“Both the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and the airlines, and even the industry, should recognise that Parts 18 and 19 of the FCCPC Act got a great push and a filip under the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo.  Keyamo started insisting, ” You have a consumer protection, whatever, even though you say we are protecting airlines, he gave them a push. That directorate has never been as active as it is”, he added.

Reminded that the airlines in the defence of their actions by hiking fares during the Yuletide by over 500 per cent attributed the huge rise to market forces of demand and supply, Aligbe rubbished the claim that no society throws the floodgates open with some forms of regulation, which he said capitalists could take advantage of if not regulated.

He alluded to global development, which gave rise to a modicum of price control dating back to the First World War, which brought in capitalism, stressing that the first thing nations discovered was the fear of allowing capitalism to thrive and spiral out of control and its threat to society.

“That is how every country, even the capitalists themselves, knew that this could not be helped. That is why they introduced economic regulations. That is how economic regulation came into being. The question of market forces has always been there. If you leave them to go with market forces, they will kill the consumer. But they recognised that after killing the consumer, you kill yourself. You kill the consumer, you have no consumer. So it is the interest of capitalists, producers, to ensure prices are regulated.”

“In the aviation sector, like the US. Yes, in the aviation sector, there are sanctions. They have developed to that level. But we should recognise that we have not gotten to that level. We are developing, we are building it up”, said Aligbe.

Speaking on the inability of passengers to make bookings on airlines’ portals for three months from December as a deliberate plot to jack up fares arbitrarily, he alleged, “They caused a situation where there’s a surge. What they did was create a situation in which there was a surge of passengers trying to access the portal. Once that happened, they say they now hike up the fare.”

Just recently, the Chairman of United Nigeria Airlines, Prof. Obiora Okonkwo, attributed this to the inability to secure deals on wet lease popularly referred to as ACMI (Aircraft, Crew, Maintenance, and Insurance), which is expected to be filed with the NCAA unlike in other climes where flight reservations can be done six months and one year into passengers scheduled trip.

But Aligbe faulted the claim, saying, “Whose competence is it to ensure that the aircraft you are going to lease arrives at the right time? Let me tell you: you know the surge is coming even by the middle of the year. You see this aircraft; we need this. This is the route analysis; this is the passenger. You begin making enquiries and arranging an aircraft for this.  In fact, before that time, you would have concluded your lease agreement, made the initial payment, and known the aircraft would arrive on that day. So even six months before the aircraft, before that time, you would have finished your arrangement in aircraft leasing.”

Wole Shadare