Kasim Sumaina in Abuja
The National Association of Aircraft Pilots and Engineers (NAAPE) has disowned a statement opposing the proposed reduction in the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority’s (NCAA) share of the five per cent Ticket Sales Charge, stating that it neither originated from nor received the approval of the union’s National Executive Council.
The union said the position, attributed to NAAPE in recent media reports, was issued by officials of its NCAA Branch and should not be construed as the official position of the national body on the proposed amendment to the revenue-sharing formula for aviation agencies.
The clarification followed reports quoting NAAPE as warning that reducing the NCAA’s statutory allocation from 56 per cent to 40 per cent could weaken aviation safety oversight and undermine the financial independence of the regulator.
The statement, jointly signed by the chairman and secretary of the NCAA Branch, had also urged lawmakers to reject the proposed funding reduction and consider increasing the NCAA’s statutory allocation.
But NAAPE’s national leadership yesterday, said the intervention was made without the authorisation of its National Executive Council and fell outside the mandate of a branch executive committee.
The President of NAAPE, Captain Bunmi Gindeh, said branch executive committees are primarily responsible for managing the affairs and welfare of members within their respective organisations and workplaces.
Gindeh, in a statement yesterday by the Public Relations Officer, NAAPE, Engr. Blessing N. Ahmadu explained: “The National Executive Council of NAAPE wishes to state clearly that the position being circulated in the media did not emanate from the national leadership and should not be presented as the official position of the association.
“The statutory responsibility of a branch executive committee is to manage the affairs of members within its branch.
“Issues relating to national policies, legislative engagements and matters with sector-wide implications are handled by the national leadership of the association.
“The NCAA Branch did not seek or obtain the authorisation of the National Executive Council before issuing the statement. Its contents, therefore, cannot be attributed to the national leadership of NAAPE.
“Distinguishing between a branch position and that of the national leadership was necessary to ensure that the public, the media and aviation stakeholders accurately identify the source and status of statements attributed to the association.
“A branch statement and the official position of the National Executive Council are not the same and should not be conflated. We urge the media and our industry stakeholders to take note of this distinction when reporting positions attributed to NAAPE.”
The national leadership also cautioned its branches against making public pronouncements on national policy matters without recourse to the union’s established structures and internal processes.
