The National Aviation Stakeholders Forum (NASF) has called for the resignation of the Director-General of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Capt. Chris Najomo, over alleged regulatory failures and what it described   as poor handling of the issues that culminated in last week’s industrial action by aviation unions.

The group, comprising aviation experts and consultants, accused the NCAA leadership of failing to prevent the dispute over the five per cent Ticket Sales Charge (TSC) from escalating into an industrial crisis that disrupted flight operations and left thousands of passengers stranded.

In a statement signed by its National Coordinator, Engr. Yahaya Yusuf, on Monday, NASF said the crisis raised serious questions about the capacity of the NCAA under Najomo to effectively regulate the aviation sector and manage disputes before they degenerate into disruptions.

The forum argued that the cancellation and rescheduling of flights, as well as the inconvenience suffered by passengers, were avoidable, insisting that the underlying disagreements among aviation agencies, airlines and unions should have been resolved before they resulted in industrial action.

“Leadership is about preventing crises, not merely responding after flights have been grounded,” Yusuf said.

“The recent disruption has raised serious questions about the capacity of the NCAA under Capt. Najomo to effectively regulate and manage the sector.

“We believe the time has come for fresh leadership at the NCAA. Capt. Najomo should take responsibility and resign in the interest of the aviation industry and the travelling public.”

Beyond the demand for Najomo’s resignation, NASF called on the House of Representatives Committee on Aviation to expand its ongoing public hearing on the TSC sharing formula into a comprehensive investigation of the collection, remittance and utilisation of the five per cent charge.

The group urged lawmakers to obtain records of TSC collections and remittances from airlines, establish outstanding liabilities, examine enforcement measures against defaulting operators and scrutinise how funds received by aviation agencies had been utilised.

NASF said the controversy should not be reduced to the question of how the five per cent TSC should be shared among aviation agencies.

“The issue should not be limited to who gets what percentage of the five per cent TSC. Nigerians deserve to know how much has been collected, how much has been remitted and what has happened to the funds,” Yusuf said.

The forum also demanded a transparent, technology-driven system capable of tracking ticket sales, TSC collections and remittances in real time, arguing that this would help close loopholes, strengthen accountability and prevent similar disputes from disrupting flight operations.

NASF commended the National Assembly for intervening in the TSC controversy and urged lawmakers to ensure that the outcome of their engagement promotes transparency, accountability and sustainable funding for aviation agencies.

Flight operations were significantly disrupted last week following industrial action by aviation unions, with several flights cancelled while others were delayed or rescheduled for hours and, in some cases, days.

The crisis was linked to disagreements over the remittance and sharing of the five per cent statutory TSC. Intervention by the Federal Government and the National Assembly subsequently helped restore flight operations.