The presidency has written to the National Assembly requesting the confirmation of Capt. Chris Najomo as Director-General, Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, after leading the agency in an acting capacity for over a year. The PUNCH can authoritatively report.
This was followed by stiff criticism from a group named Aviation Elders, which raised issues of capacity and safety as well as alleged self-declaration as the substantive DG against the Najomo.
The elders called on the Senate and President Bola Ahmed Tinubu not to confirm Capt. Majomo, hinging their complaints against him on his alleged boastful manner without presidential pronouncement and Senate confirmation.
A statement from the elders signed by Kolade Hassan and Sy Mohammed read, “The acting DG NCAA may have declared himself as a substantive DG.”
They cited a video where he allegedly boastfully reconfirmed the news of his confirmation as the substantive DG of the NCAA.
The statement further read, “Whatever position you hold in government today, it’s transient, as you cannot remain there forever. In the industry today, if we, the elders, cannot stand up for the truth, then nobody can. The whole world is watching what is happening in the industry. And the whole world is aware of the dangerous politics being played at the agency.
“Are those engaged in announcing the substantive DG ahead of the presidency and the National Assembly aware that we have lost out on American Category One Certification, and today Nigerian commercial airlines are banned from flying into America? Are they aware that very soon, other countries will ban Nigeria?
“Are these people aware that two aircraft engines failed in some local airlines last month, with a cargo airline overshooting the runway? This, to us, is clear evidence of a lack of safety regulatory compliance by the operators and the NCAA. The report will be released by AIB soon, yet some people want Najomo confirmed at the expense of the sector.”
But in a swift reaction through a strong-worded statement signed by the Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection of the NCAA, Michael Achimugu, the group was described as a set of “puff-puff experts” who are head bent on ridiculing the person, character, and competence of Capt. Najomo with the motive of truncating his confirmation.
The NCAA publicist stated that the group had made several attempts at discrediting Najomo so as to force the hands of the president to stop his confirmation.
He also recalled how the same group, in the past, alleged that the NCAA boss paid the sum of N250m to purchase an official vehicle without recourse to procurement processes. “When that plot was blown out of the water, this rabid group resorted to all shades of blackmail, sponsored false narratives, and other tactics just to achieve their selfish aims, he added.
Tackling the group’s latest allegation, the NCAA publicist said,” Let me address their shallow allegations. They claim that Capt. Chris Najomo may have declared himself as DG-NCAA in a very boastful manner without presidential pronouncement and Senate confirmation.
“This allegation is based on a video where Najomo can be heard introducing himself in a meeting with the following words, “My name is Capt. Chris Najomo, Director-General, Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority.
“There is nothing in the video that mentions his confirmation or otherwise. The DGCA is called Jolly Papa for a reason. He is very charismatic and ebullient. He has always introduced himself the same way in internal meetings. As usual, I will challenge these faceless “elders” to provide evidence of Najomo pronouncing himself as substantive DG NCAA. The NCAA official social media handles have said nothing about the topic of the DGCA’s status. Not even the spokesman of the authority has spoken to the media about it. I will waste no further energy on this point.”
Also addressing safety allegations against the NCAA under the supervision of his boss, Achimugu questioned the accusers, saying, “How can anyone claim that Capt. Chris Najomo, who just completed the NCAA’s Flight Data Centre—commissioned by the Honourable Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development—does not care about safety?” Rather, he holds that the said elders were responsible for the destruction of the aviation industry in years past.
“For all of the talk about safety, not a single commercial plane has crashed under Najomo’s leadership. In fact, it was Najomo who suspended Dana Air for poor financial health, which was impeding its ability to operate safely. That’s a man who cares about the safety of passengers.
“As for the unfortunate helicopter crash, we will not preempt the NSIB. When their report is released, we will be able to make comments,” he stated.
