 PANDEMONIUM reigned this afternoon at the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) as Federal Government through the Ministry of Transport, without warning sacked all the directors of the agency with immediate effect.
Eight directors were fired by the Minister of State for Aviation, Sen. Hadi Sirika after the approval from the Federal Government with two of the directorship positions being empty owing to retirement of the officers there.
Nigerianflightdeck learnt that directors affected includes Alhaji Adamu Abdullahi (Director of Consumer Protection), Capt. Ayodele Sasegbon (Director of General Aviation), Alhaji Salawu Ozigi (Director of Finance and Accounts), Barr. Aba Ejembi (Director of Administration) .
Others are Engr. Benedict Adeyileka (Director of Airworthiness), Mr. Justus Wariya (Director of Air Transport Regulation), and Mr. Austin-Amadi Ifeanyi (Director of Human Resources).
It was gathered that Dr. Joyce Nkemakolam (Director of Aerodrome and Airspace Standards) and Mr. Emmanuel Ogunbami (Director of Licensing) were no longer with the regulatory body as at the time of this purge.
A source who spoke to us under anonymity said he was unaware and never saw the sack coming even as most of the directors were said to the bedrock of the CAA.
The affected directors were immediately ordered to handover to the next in command in their various directorates who will in the interim take charge of activities in their directorates.
The General Manager, Public Affairs, NCAA, Mr. Sam Adurogboye in a telephone conversation with Independent, confirmed the development, but stated that he had no information on the reason for the sack.
He simply replied that he was aware of the sack of the directors, adding that they were all political appointees.
“It is true that all the directors have been disengaged, but I don’t have details of their disengagement,†he said.
It was learnt that the Director-General of NCAA, Capt. Muhtar Usman had told the affected directors of their disengagement at a meeting he convened yesterday’s afternoon at Aviation House at the Murtala Muhammed Airport (MMA), Lagos, which came as a rude shock to many of them.
Some of the directors were still sighted on Thursday at the airport when the Acting President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo paid an unscheduled visit to the facilities at the airport in Lagos. They toured the facilities together with Osinbajo.
It was gathered that when Usman conveyed the sack to the directors, they all wore sombre look as they weren’t expecting such news from the ministry.
With the sack of the directors, it’s only the DG, Capt. Muhtar Usman that remains as part of that garde but it is learnt that by Monday there will be new appointees to the vacant offices.
Recall that last October, federal government sacked about 21 senior officials of the FAAN including directors, general managers and deputy general managers as well as improperly placed staff.
On January 9, 2017, government equally sacked the chief executives of the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NIMET), Nigerian College of Aviation Technology (NCAT), Zaria and Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB) of their appointments.
The former director general of NCAA, Capt. Fola Akinkuotu took over from Mr. Emma Anasi as the managing director of NAMA; Prof. Sani Abubakar Mashi replaced Dr. Anthony Anuforom as the director general of NIMET, Capt. Abdulsalam Mohammed succeeded Capt. Samuel Caulcrick as the rector of NCAT while Mr. Akinola Olateru replaced Dr. Felix Abali as commissioner of AIB.
