The management of International Aviation College, Ilorin has decorated five graduating students who have completed their commercial and private pilot licence courses.
This is just as the Acting Rector of the College, Capt. Yakubu Okatahi has appealed to the Kwara State Governor, AbdulRahman Abdulrasaq to come to the aid of the college to remain in operation stressing that there is the need for adequate funding to prevent the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) from shutting the college.
Capt. Okatahi made this known during the graduation of the students while explaining to the governor who was attendant that the present management inherited 55 students when it came on board in March, 2022 and said 27 of them had so far been graduated.
Okatahi and other officials of the college also commended the governor for the regular subvention to the college which has enabled the school to remain in operation.
According to Okatahi, the Governor’s recent N75m release enabled the College to purchase a new aircraft engine and propeller, 10,000 litres of jet-A1, and repair of the College’s fuel dump, among others.
The Rector however appealed to the governor for increased funding of the college to enable it meet all the requirements stipulated by the regulatory authority.He said the College can do better with sufficient funding by the State Government.
He, however, assured the Governor that the current Management would not disappoint the state government for the trust and confidence reposed in it.
Registrar of the College, Mr. Mohammed Jimada Jibril equally pleaded with the Governor for the upward review of the College’s monthly subvention to enable the College implement salary structure for her staff as obtained in sister institutions like NCAT, Zaria.
The Governor, who decorated some of the graduating students, urged the College to put all its need in writing to his office.
He advised the management of the college to avoid a repeat of the mismanagement which drew back the progress of the institution with withdrawal of the Nigerian Air Force and Navy from the college.
“With effective management, I believe Aviation College can attain autonomy and self-sufficiency in terms of funding. Our aim for the school is to achieve this, instead of relying on subvention from the government,†he said.
It would be recalled that the NCAA recently lifted the restriction placed on the college to admit more students following the intervention of the governor who provided the resources for the college to meet the NCAA’s regulations.
