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Chinelo Obogo
The Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) has given a 30-day ultimatum to debtor airlines and private, state owned airports to settle all outstanding debts owed to the agency or face severe penalties.
The demand notice which expires on the 28th February, 2020, expects all debtors to settle their indebtedness or risk sanctions. The affected debtors had earlier been communicated with details of their respective indebtedness to NAMA but have made no efforts to pay.
The notice sent to the affected debtors read in part: “NAMA hereby notifies debtor private /state owned airport operators and airlines that effective February 28, 2020, our services will no longer be available for the operation of their airports or airlines as the agency can no longer keep its personnel working at airports without payment. In the meantime, the affected debtors, where in doubt, have been advised to liaise with the commercial department of NAMA for reconciliation and/ or clarification within the stipulated grace period.”
The agency has been in severe financial difficulty as a result of the debts owed it and this situation has hindered its smooth operations owing to the fact that it generates its own resources and funds most of its projects, Daily Sun has learned.
Though the amount owed was not specified, information from sources within the agency suggested that the airlines’ debt is over N3 billion and most domestic airlines, including cargo and charter operators, are heavily indebted to the agency.
The function of NAMA is to provide air traffic services in Nigeria, including air traffic control, visual and non-visual aids, aeronautical telecommunication services and electricity supplies to enable public transport, private, business and military aircraft fly, as far as practicable and as safely as possible.
The agency is constitutionally empowered to generate revenue from en-route local and international facility charges; over flight charges; charges on class B-messages; 30 per cent of the air ticket sales charge; 30 per cent of the cargo sales charge; sales of information and violation of airspace fines.
Besides debts owed by airlines some of which go back as far as 2001 which necessitated litigation in the court in 2013, carriers have incurred more debts even after the court case ended in favour of NAMA. These debts have caused the dwindling of revenue in the agency and has in turn affected the payment of the pensions of retired staff.
