… Says they went beyond their bounds
The Aviation Safety Round Table Initiative(ASRTI) also known as Aviation Round Table(ART) has stated categorically that aviation unions overstepped their bounds by
picketing airport terminals over the non remittance of Ticket Sales Charges and Cargo Sales Charges to the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority(NCAA).
This is as the body also condemned the unions for singling out Air Peace for picketing .
In a statement signed by the President of the ASRTI, Air Commodore Ademola Onitiju,(rtd) and made available to aviation journalists in Lagos, the group said that it is deeply appalled by the disruptive and selective strike organised by labour unions today in utter disregard of the ongoing intervention of the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Mr Festus Keyamo.
Onitiju in the statement said just while the recognise the unions right to advocate for the welfare of their membership under universally accepted principles, picketing airport terminals over the non remittance of Ticket Sales Charges and Cargo Sales Charges to the NCAA is completely out of order.
The enforcement of statutory penalties and the recovery of debts owed to regulatory agencies, Onitiju said remain the exclusive statutory mandate of the Federal Government and its empowered institutions, adding that the Nigerian Labour Congress(NLC) and its allies have clearly overstepped their bounds.
The rules of engagement and understanding of issues, he said must drive how unions fight or advocate for a cause, not through the use of coercion, intimidation, or disruption.
He noted that these actions directly contravene core tenets of Nigerian law designed to protect critical national infrastructure. Under Section 29 of the Civil Aviation Act, all services facilitating safe flight operations, passenger embarkation, and cargo handling within aerodromes are explicitly designated as essential services, strictly prohibiting strikes, lockouts, pickets, blockades, or service disruptions of any kind within regulated aviation facilities.
ASRTI furthermore opined that in pursuant to Section 18 of the Trade Disputes Act, declaring or participating in a strike while a trade dispute is actively undergoing official mediation or before statutory dispute resolution procedures have been exhausted is explicitly illegal. Under Nigerian labour jurisprudence, trade union membership is strictly voluntary, and coercing, intimidating, or targeting employees or selecting individual corporate entities for disruptive blockades violates the constitutional freedom of association.
He pointed out that ASRTI has maintained severally that disruptive or unbridled labour activism has no place in the aviation sector, which is not only heavily regulated but volatile and sensitive to disruptions.
“We unequivocally stand against picketing at airport terminals and their immediate environs. Travel disruptions are not only distressing for passengers who have paid for the services but send negative signals about Nigerian aviation to potential investors and the international community.
“We also perceive the unions press release threatening to picket airlines owing the Ticket Sales Charges and Cargo Sales Charges and those perceived to be hindering their staff from participating in union activities as not only abusive but arrogant.
“Any airline perceived to be hindering their staff during a strike or picketing should be approached at their corporate head office, not in or around the sensitive airports where other businesses are disrupted.
“Premeditatively singling out Air Peace Airline for disruptive picketing shows clear bias from a group that claims to preach fairness,” the statement said.
The statement said that to secure the integrity of the nation’s airspace, protect the traveling public, and restore investor confidence, a constructive way forward must be embraced by all parties, adding that labour unions must immediately halt all blockades and disruptions at airport terminals, ensuring that any grievances regarding internal corporate administration or staff unionisation are pursued strictly through appropriate corporate headquarters or legal channels away from sensitive security zones.
The group said that all parties must return to the negotiating table and allow the mediation framework initiated by the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development to run its course without coercion.
“Finally, regulatory debt recovery must remain strictly between the regulatory authority and the respective carriers via established legal and administrative mechanisms, insulating the wider traveling public and innocent operators from collateral disruption,” the statement said.
The ASRTI urged restraint and requests that the unions tow the path of honour by allowing due process for the resolution of disputes by the appropriate authorities rather than resorting to disruptive and unwarranted self help.
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