Aviation
PH Airport Community Gets PCRC
The Port Harcourt Interna
tional Airport Police Station Serving the airport community has inaugurated its Police Community Relations Committee (PCRC) to foster understanding, cooperation and improve the image of the service.
performing the inauguration last Tuesday, the new District Police Officer (DPO), Mr. Henry O.U and his predecessor Mr Samuel Anele, said the election of the executive of the body places heavy responsibility on the leadership of the PCRC to galvanise the airport community positively about the police and its relationship to the public.
The duo in their separate speeches congratulated those elected to pilot the affairs of the body and urged members of the airport community to show interest and be part of the PCRC.
The Chairman of Omagwa Council of Chiefs HRH, Chief Bright Kinikanwo Kpaluku, said he was happy to witness the inauguration of the PCRC and described it as a landmark having incorporated the community in the protection of the airport.
He lamented the porous nature of the Port Harcourt International Airport and called for proper security of the community, particularly under the present security challenges facing the nation.
Chief Kinikanwo who alleged that about 21 roads are linked to the airport advised the security to patrol the areas covered by the perimeter fencing regularly and pledged the support and cooperation of the Omagwa community.
In his speech, the Chairman of the Police Community Relations Committee, Mr Francis Agbafor, thanked the Regional General Manager of the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) and other stakeholders for the conducive working environment prevailing at the airport.
Mr Agbafor, said the PCRC was instituted to liaise between the police and the public with the aim of ensuring better image for the police, and enhance good relationship.
The chairman who traced the origin of PCRC to 1984, lauded the former Inspector General of Police Mr Inyang for the initiative adding that it would enable the public interact freely with the police.
He noted that the task ahead was enormous considering the present security situation in the country and enjoined members of the airport community to support the committee. The occasion chaired by FAAN Regional General Marveger Mrs Ebele Okoye was represented by the Head, Pubic Affairs and Communications Mr Ola Ogundolapo.
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Aviation Professionals Want Agencies Boards’ Inauguration
As a measure to curb corruption and restore accountability, the Association of Nigeria Aviation Professionals (ANAP), has called on the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, to push for the urgent formation and inauguration of governing boards for all other aviation agencies.
ANAP’s Secretary General, AbdulRasaq Saidu, made this call at the weekend when interacting with aviation correspondents, in reaction to recent inauguration of Board of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN).
Keyamo had recently inaugurated the FAAN board, more than six months after its members were appointed by President Bola Tinubu, where Dr. Umar Ganduje was named Board Chairman, with FAAN’s Managing Director, Olubunmi Kuku, as the Vice Chairman.
Other board members include representatives from the Ministries of Justice, Defence, Tourism, and Aviation, as well as professionals from the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology, and FAAN’s legal department.
The ANAP scribe there urged the aviation Minister not to stop at FAAN but to ensure that all aviation parastatals are given functional boards to restore order and credibility to the sector.
He, however, commended Keyamo for recently inaugurating the board of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria but stressed that more needed to be done.
Saidu also warned that the continued delay in constituting boards for other aviation agencies creates room for unchecked abuses, including illegal contracts, fraudulent employment practices, and mismanagement.
“The absence of governing boards violates the enabling Acts that established these agencies. Only properly constituted boards can enforce discipline, ensure due process in decision-making, and provide oversight to prevent corruption”, Saidu said.
He emphasised that the aviation unions, including ANAP, have consistently raised concerns about poor governance and lack of transparency within the aviation system.
He called on President Bola Tinubu to act swiftly by appointing board members for all relevant agencies, in the interest of fairness and aviation safety.
Saidu also tackled the former Minister of Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, for failing to inaugurate any boards during his eight-year tenure, despite appointments being made by former President Muhammadu Buhari.
“ANAP raised the alarm several times under Sirika’s leadership, but nothing changed. That lapse has continued under the current administration, and it must be addressed now”, Saidu stated.
By: Corlins Walter
