The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Belujane Konsult, Chris Aligbe, in this interview with OLUSEGUN KOIKI, speaks about the rising unruly passenger behaviours in Nigeria’s aviation industry, its danger and the steps required of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) to curb the trend, among other issues.
What is your view about the recent rise in unruly passenger behaviours and the actions taken so far by the NCAA?
NCAA has come a long way in handling unruly passenger behaviours. There was a time when there was insufficient sensitivity to consumer protection and passenger rights abuses. Consumer protection is a new concept in Nigeria’s aviation industry. Before now, the airlines never reported cases of unruly passenger behaviours to the NCAA. It is similar to the banking industry, which suppresses fraud in the system due to the fear of its impact on their image. Also, the airlines didn’t want to lose their customers, and so, they never reported some of these cases. But it has got to the point that the airlines can no longer bear the unruliness of some of the passengers. I will still give some credit to the NCAA; it has been up there pointing out to the passengers that some of their behaviours are unacceptable.
As you know, the issue of consumer protection only came to the fore with Parts 18 and 19 of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Regulations (NCARs). Part 18 is on Air Transport Economic Regulations and Part 19 is on Consumer Protection Regulations. These parts were introduced under the former Director-General of the NCAA, Dr Harold Demuren, in response to allegations of price fixing and fleecing of Nigerian passengers by British Airways and Virgin Atlantic Airways.
The NCAA set up a panel headed by Justice Oguntade. The panel looked at all the cases and found the two airlines fleecing Nigerian passengers of money they were not supposed to take from them. However, the two airlines refused to acknowledge the offence. They accepted that they did it against Nigerian passengers, but noted that there was no law in Nigeria that protected Nigerian passengers of the offence. So, they did not breach any Nigerian law, which was true because, as of the time, the civil aviation regulations stopped at Part 17, which is on aviation security.
Were the two airlines found guilty of the offence in Europe and America?
However, in Europe and the United States, the two airlines were found guilty because Europe, through the European Union (EU) and America, through the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), already have the regulations that protect their passengers. However, in Nigeria, they refused to pay because there was no law that protected passengers at the time.
The commission knew that what the two airlines did was morally repugnant. But where there is no law, there is no crime. So, the airlines were left free of the offence. It was that issue that gave birth to parts 18 and 19.
After Demuren left the NCAA, I doubt there was any major enforcement. If a passenger reported a case to the agency, it took a long time before anybody would give a response. But over the last few years, the situation has changed, and the NCAA has also let the passengers know that they equally have obligations to airlines.
What has happened in recent times is that the NCAA is now broadening its obligations to passengers to protect the airlines against the unruliness of passengers. Some of us laughed when Senator Adams Oshiomhole’s case came up because it was a breach of obligation on the part of the passenger. His right was never abused. The same thing with King Wasiu Ayinde Marshal (KWAM 1). What I am not very clear about is that of Miss. Comfort Emmanson, because a lot of people went overboard.
Having said that, I think the NCAA has achieved a lot in public information and sensitisation of the rights of passengers, and now the obligations of passengers. Now, the NCAA is beginning to bite, even if it is a small bite, on the issue of passenger rights abuses as well as the issue of obligations – air rage and ground rage. Where the sanctions have been applied to passengers, they did not publicise it. So, nobody knows what they have done.
Recently, I heard the Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection of the NCAA, Michael Achimugu, talking about publishing and shame. I am aware that other countries are publishing and shaming some unruly passengers. I read an article that the FAA sanctioned two passengers to the tune of $188,000 and $175,000 each because of disruption, while over 200 passengers are listed on ‘no flight’ ban of some airlines.
The NCAA should begin to bite; it has done a lot of sensitisation. It needs some courage to begin to bite more. The NCAA should stand on its own without any interference by the minister or anybody. The institution has to be built, and the institution should stand firm.
What do you have to say on the ongoing plan by the Federal Government to concession the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu?
There is no much information about the Akanu Ibiam International Airport (AIIA) in the public domain for now. First, we heard 80 years; later, it was 60 years. There has been so much equivocation in the industry.
How many years will you recommend to the government?
This is largely dependent on what you want the airport to be. Are you looking at an airport with five million yearly passengers or more? Also, what is your developmental plan for such an airport? If an airport has a capacity of five million today, are you looking at 10 to 15 million capacity, say, in the next 20 years? The length of years of concession will be determined by what you plan for such an airport. But I think 80 years is insane, and 60 years is near insanity because you are mortgaging the rights and privileges of two to three generations.
That is why you shouldn’t do it because you don’t even know what tomorrow will be. It is advisable for any concession to be limited to a generation. We can have an airport concession of about 30 to 35 years. However, you can have a provision for extension at the end of the first agreement.
