Minister of Aviation Hadi Sirika appeared at a State House briefing in Aso Villa on Thursday. Aviation workers’ unions have taken Sirika and the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) to court over the planned concession of major airports across the country.
The unions—Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, National Union of Air Transport Employees, Association of Nigeria Aviation Professionals, and the Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUB‑FAAN Branch)—filed a suit in the Lagos division of the National Industrial Court on 14 March 2023. Their lawyer, Funmi Falana of Falana and Falana Chambers, submitted the filing, as revealed by court documents obtained by our correspondent in Abuja.
The unions argue that Sirika and FAAN lack the authority to initiate concession deals for Aminu Kano International Airport (Kano), Port Harcourt International Airport (Port Harcourt), Murtala Mohammed International Airport (Ikeja, Lagos), and Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (Abuja) without the consent and authorization of the Federal Government, the 36 state governments, and the 774 local government councils. They are seeking an injunction to restrain Sirika and FAAN from privatizing the airports.
One court document states: “Restrain the defendants (Sirika and FAAN) from determining the employment of the members of the claimants without complying with the provisions of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria Act (CAP F5) Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004 and the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria Reviewed Conditions of Service 2021, in any manner, whatsoever and howsoever.”
In October 2022, Sirika formally unveiled the bidders for the Lagos, Abuja and Kano terminals, marking the end of the Request for Proposals phase of the Nigeria Airports Concession Programme. Speaking at a media briefing in Abuja, Sirika explained that the bidders were selected after meeting criteria set by the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission and guided by the National Policy on Public‑Private Partnership.
Comments are closed for this story.