NCAA: FG shops for new DG

The federal Government has concluded plan to appoint a new Director-General for the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA).
This is coming on the heel of administrative irregularities in the assumption of duty on appointment ‎of the current Director General.

The Ministry of Air transportation in Abuja alleged that the current Director-General did not resign his former appointment as career Civil Servant with the federal Government seconded to the Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB).

A source in the ministry said this contravenes government regulations to assume a political office without first resigning a previous civil service appointment on attaining the mandatory 35 years of service or 60 years of age whichever comes first.

Besides, the source said available records showed that the current DG ‘is way past 60 years” of age.

“Administratively, when your are appointed chief executive, you should retire your appointment as a civil servant before accepting the fresh position, in this case from our records here in the ministry, even after leaving as CEO of AIB,he was still drawing salaries from AIB, while reporting here in Abuja.”

“Curiously, there is nothing in his official file in the NCAA to provide the human resources department to provide records of his age or length of service except just his letter of appointment. A file should contain things such as date of birth, records of appointments and last position among others, but that is not the case” the source explained.

In addition, the source said the ministry is saddened by technical breaches in Lagos they find hard to explain to the Presidency, where a Helicopter Company with same type of aircraft recorded two crashes within a year”

“This is indicative of faulty or lack of oversight,’ the source noted, saying the ministry was equally embarrassed a few weeks ago when the Labour ministry intervened to avert a strike action by an Helicopter Company staff rather than the NCAA.

“NCAA should have been the first responder to mitigate the intended strike action not the labour ministry ”

However, Labour unions at the weekend frowned at the breach of protocol in NCAA where a special assistant to the DG is given powers to act as a signatory to the accounts of the authority.

In house unions said it is worrisome that a grade level 15 office is designated to be a signatory to the accounts.

“This administrative flaw led to the huge financial scam in a sister agency, the Nigeria Airspace Management Agency(NAMA)

‎Aviation workers under the aegis of National Union of Air Transport Employees (NUATE) urged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to extend its light at NAMA to the NCAA, the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) and Nigerian Meteorological agency (NIMET).

Secretary General of NUATE, Olayinka Abioye‎ described the recent revelation as a shame to the Nigeria Aviation industry.

Wole Shadare