The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has warned the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) against disrupting flight operations at airports across the country.
Keyamo gave the warning at the ministerial retreat for Minister, Permanent Secretary, Directors and Head of Agencies of the Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace Development in Effurun, Delta State, on Thursday, November 9, 2023.
His warning came after the NLC members and their Trade Union Congress (TUC) counterparts protested at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja on Thursday over the maltreatment of the NLC President, Joe Ajaero.
Keyamo said as the political head of the aviation industry in Nigeria, he would not tolerate the activities of the Labour leaders blocking access roads to the airports.
The minister said: “Please, I want to beg the labour leaders, leave aviation alone. You cannot target aviation in trying to address your grievances.
“In targeting the aviation industry, you are targeting a global village.
“I am addressing the labour leaders across the country, do not allow the Labour Party (LP) to destroy the labour movement.
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“I repeat, do not allow the LP and party politics to destroy the labour movement.
“As a minister, I will not allow the labour movement to target the aviation. If they do, I will fight back. They should not bring politics into aviation.
“They can deceive others but they cannot deceive me. So, I am appealing that the labour movement should not destroy themselves on the platform of politics.”
Keyamo said the industry was key and central to any sustainable growth and development in other sectors of the Nigerian economy, adding that he identified a five-point agenda for the rapid transformation of the sector in line with the eight priority areas of President Bola Tinubu.
According to him, some of the priorities were ensuring strict compliance with the nation’s laws and regulations and international obligation, among others.
Others were support for the growth and sustenance of local airline business, human capacity development, and optimisation of revenue generation.
The minister said that the objective of the retreat was to brainstorm, deliberate and carried out a “SWOT” analysis of the industry to proffer practical solutions to attain the desired results.
Also speaking, the Chairman of the House Committee on Aviation Technology, Thomas Ereyitomi, said the retreat would served as a testimony of a collective commitment to elevate the standard of aviation in Nigeria.
Ereyitomi said effective aviation management was a cornerstone upon which the industry thrives.
“The decisions and strategies we formulate during this retreat will have a great impact on our national development,” he said.
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