By Mary Emeka
The ongoing industrial action by aviation unions has been prolonged following the failure of airline operators to honour a meeting convened by the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, SAN, to address the issues in dispute.
The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), in a statement on Tuesday, said the meeting, which was convened by the Minister last week, could not hold because the airline operators failed to honour the invitation.
The development has continued to affect passengers and other stakeholders in the aviation sector, with the NCAA appealing to the unions to sheathe their swords and exercise restraint pending the Minister’s return.
According to the statement signed by the Director General of Civil Aviation, Capt. Chris Ona Najomo, Keyamo has been actively working towards resolving the issues responsible for the industrial action.
The NCAA called on all parties to embrace dialogue and cooperation, expressing confidence that the dispute would be resolved shortly and normal flight operations would resume as soon as practicable.
The Authority also assured the travelling public that flight safety remained uncompromised despite the ongoing industrial action.
It said it was continuing to exercise its statutory safety oversight responsibilities to ensure that safety standards in the aviation sector were maintained.
The NCAA regretted the inconvenience caused to passengers and appealed for their patience and understanding as efforts continued to resolve the dispute.