An aviation expert, Capt John Ojikutu(rtd), on Tuesday, asked the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), to caution protesting unions against denying passengers from accessing the terminal 2 of the Muritala Muhammed Airport (MMA2), Lagos.
Ojikutu, in a chat with NATIONAL ECONOMY said the NCAA has the absolute powers and authority on civil aviation security in the airports, urging unions to take griviances to offices of agencies or companies and not to terminal, thereby, disrupting flight services.
Ojikutu, who spoke against the backdrop of picketing of MMA2 by the leaders of Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (ATSSSAN), thereby, making scores of passengers stranded and many trapped on Tuesday.
The unions shut down MMA2 because the operator of the terminal, Bi-Courtney Aviation Service Limited (BASL), sacked 34 of her staff.
The union leaders, protesting the sack, however, barricaded the entrance to the terminal since 2am on Tuesday, 1st November, 2022 till the time of filing this report.
Due to the barricade, passengers that came into the terminal from other part of the country were stranded as they cannot move in or out of the facility.
The airlines whose passengers were accepted due to the faceoff are Arik Air, Max Air, Azman Air, Air Peace and Ibom Air.
Ojikutu said, “Unions blocked the entrances to the MMA2 terminal refusing passengers from getting access into the terminal to catch their flights operated by airlines and not by the terminal operator.
“It is high time the lawlessness of the unions are curtailed by the responsible authorities especially the NCAA. The NCAA in particular has the absolute powers and authority on civil aviation security in the airports. If their are Civil Aviation Laws for disruptive passengers there must be similar laws within the Airport Operational Areas (AOA) for disruptive staff and unions.”
However, airlines have earlier warned passengers to expect flight disruption, saying, the picketing will affect in and outbound flights.
According to Ibom Air, in a statement made available to NATIONAL ECONOMY, the BASL facility has been closed to both workers and passengers by the protesting union.
It said, “This is to bring to the attention of our esteemed passengers and the public, that our operating terminal out of Lagos, the Murtala Mohamed Airport 2, operated by Bicourtney Aviation Services Limited has been completely closed off to workers and passengers alike by the Labour Union, very early this morning.
“Efforts are currently being made to resolve the situation; however, please note that this action will greatly impact our flights scheduled in and out of Lagos today. We greatly regret the impact of this unexpected action on your day’s plans.”
