As court proceedings against the new national carrier, Nigeria Air, linger, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has insisted that the country would not continue to depend on foreign carriers.
This is coming even as the union threw its weight behind the government’s decision to establish a national carrier.
Domestic airlines, under the aegis of Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) last year, asked the Federal High Court to stop the commencement of the new carrier.
The suit was filed by the Registered Trustees of AON, Azman Air Services Limited, Air Peace Limited, Max Air Limited, United Nigeria Airlines Company Limited, and Topbrass Aviation Limited.
Also, Ethiopian Airlines Board Chairman, Girma Wake, weekend met with President Muhammadu Buhari, asking for early resolution of the legal disputes delaying the take-off of the Nigeria Air project.
However, speaking after a visit to the Association of Nigeria Aviation Professionals, ANAP, in Lagos, NLC President, Comrade Joe Ajaero noted that, the country establishing a national carrier was long overdue, adding that due process must, however, be followed.
He said: “The country can not be supporting foreign airlines to rip off the country and to the detriment of its local airlines.
“But we would demand as a matter of right a National Carrier, Nigeria must have a national carrier, you mentioned here, air, land, and sea, we cannot be depending on foreign carriers, at a stage trying to give them subvention and we keep on mouthing that government has no business in business and government now has business in another person’s business,
”If an individual is running an airline, the government will be giving individual money to survive but government cant use debt money to run its own business”.
