NCAA Withholds Services From 11 Domestic Airlines Over Unpaid Dues
The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has ordered all its directorates to stop rendering services to 11 domestic airlines until they clear outstanding financial obligations to the regulator.
The directive was contained in a circular issued by the NCAA’s Director of Finance and Accounts, Olufemi Odukoya, titled “Updated List of Airlines on No-Pay-No-Service.”
According to the memo, the Director-General of the NCAA, Capt. Chris Najomo, directed that no directorate should provide any service to the affected airlines without prior financial clearance from the Directorate of Finance and Accounts.
The affected carriers include Air Peace Limited, Ibom Air Limited, Arik Air Limited, United Nigeria Airlines, Umza Air, NGEagle Airline, Max Air Limited, Caverton Helicopters, Overland Airways, Rano Air, and ValueJet.
Industry analysts have faulted the airlines for contributing to government revenue leakages. One expert described the NCAA’s action as “not only justified, but long overdue.”
“What makes this situation particularly disturbing is that these funds do not belong to the airlines in the first place. The five per cent Ticket Sales Charge is a statutory levy paid by passengers and collected by airlines in trust for the regulator under the laws establishing the NCAA,” the analyst said.
The expert noted that once collected, such monies should be remitted promptly and transparently, not retained to finance operational shortfalls or balance struggling books.
“To collect these statutory charges from passengers and deliberately fail to remit them amounts to a grave abuse of public trust and corporate responsibility. No airline has the legal or moral authority to appropriate funds meant for aviation safety oversight, consumer protection, regulatory efficiency, and sectoral sustainability,” the analyst added.
The source maintained that the argument that remitting these obligations could worsen the financial condition of airlines is untenable.