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By Chinelo Obogo
The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has withheld the Air Transport License ( ATL) of Azman Air until it signs a Memorandum of Understanding ( MoU) on how to remit N1.2 billion debt incurred from collection of Passenger Service Charge (PSC).
An ATL is one of the licenses issued by the regulator to airlines before they can commence operation while awaiting the Air Operator Certificate (AOC) that authorises them to begin operations. Without an ATL, an airline’s Air Operators Certificate ( AOC) becomes invalid. The Director General of the NCAA, Captain Musa Nuhu, told journalists that Azman Air’s ATL has been withheld but stressed that the move is not aimed at crippling the airlines but to compel all indebted operators to comply with the rules to renew their ATL.
Nuhu said that one of the requirements the airline must provide is Tax Clearance and it must sign an MOU to negotiate it’s debt remittance which is part of the N42billion and $7.8million debt in PSC. He assured that when that is done, they would get their approvals as it is part of the renewal process.
“This is not a charge and this is not their money, it’s monies collected in trust for us from passengers. We are not asking them for an interest rate, no penalties, we just want our funds remitted. We asked them to sit and negotiate as they collected on our behalf and refused to remit.
“I cannot keep explaining to the the Minister, to the Accountant General, to the Presidency why we cannot remit money meant for them to them . We have been forced to carry out this action,” he said.
He said he recognises the challenges airlines are passing through which was why their regulator is not asking for its monies in bulk but has put up an MoU to enable airlines have a payment plan.
“We know that if we tell them to give us all these monies at the same time, it is very difficult and not possible, so, what we have put repayment plan in to prevent to prevent the debts from increasing.
“We have a tripartite agreement; the NCAA, airlines and the airlines’ banks. So, once those funds go to the bank, the five per cent TSA/CSC is automatically deducted and goes into the NCAA bank and NCAA will share it with the other sister agencies on a pre-determined ratio as entrenched in the 2006 Civil Aviation Act.
“For the legacy debts, what we have done is to enter an MoU with all the operators; we know they can’t pay all at a time, but they have to pay us a reasonable amount of money on a monthly basis at least.
“What we have said is that if they don’t pay this legacy debt, we are not going to renew their licenses; AOC, ATL. That is one of the conditions and most of them have entered into the agreement,” he said.
