As part of the ways of tackling the menace of unemployment in the country, the House of Representatives Committee on Aviation have concluded plans to ‘audit’ foreign airlines that are operating into the country to ascertain the number of Nigerians they employed as part of their cabin staff and technical crew (pilots and engineers).
Honourable Nnolim Nnaji the Chairman of the Committee said the audit would be done through the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, (NCAA) adding that, if it is discovered that Nigeria is being shortchanged in any way, the committee will not allow it.
He said the parliament would also be interested in finding out the percentage of their tickets that are sold by local travel agents and at what commission and noted that the country has been over generous to the airlines with unrestricted access to the Nigeria travel market, which they must reciprocate by engaging indigenous pilots, engineers, and licensed cabin crew into their technical staff.
He added, “Most of the foreign airlines are granted multiple entries points into the country so as Representatives of the people we will be interested in knowing how such gestures reflect in our economy and labour force. It is equally important that we know the percentage of their tickets that are sold by our local agents so that we ensure that what obtains in other climes are same here”. Honourable Nnaji further stressed.
The House of Representatives Committee Chairman on Aviation emphatically stated that if it was found out that the foreign airlines were not engaging Nigerians as part of their technical and cabin crew the committee would seek to correct it so that young Nigerian professionals could be employed.
