Agitation in NCAA over recall of retired worker

The calm in the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA, may have been ruptured as a personnel (names withheld) who retired after completing her 35 years in the service has reportedly been brought back to the system as a contract staff without due process.

 

The staff, who was said to have spent extra two years and three months after her retirement was due, retired only two months ago and was immediately engaged as a contract staff.

Vanguard learned, is already causing bad blood in the system, especially in the critical departments of the agency said to be short of staff, also gathered that the lady had her services transferred to the NCAA as a cabin inspector from the defunct Nigeria Airways where she was a cabin crew.

Efforts to get NCAA’s reaction yesterday proved abortive as deputy spokesman of the agency, Mr. Sam Adurogboye’s promise to get back to Vanguard didn’t materialise at press time.

However, a source told Vanguard: ‘’She was supposed to have retired two years ago, having served 35 years but she remained in NCAA, drawing salaries.

“However,when this current Director General assumed office, the cover up was discovered and she was consequently retired about 2 months ago with the added instruction to refund the salaries she collected for the two years and three months she overstayed.

“She was officially given a letter to that effect but amazingly, instead of refunding the said amount and possibly prosecuted for offences bordering on fraud and criminality,she has been brought back to her position in NCAA as a contract staff.’’

It was also learned that a discreet interview was conducted for her and some others in Abuja last month without any advert as stipulated by the Civil Service Act.

The angst of staff of the agency is said to be fuelled by the fact that the agency is currently dominated by administrative staff, while the more critical units of the agency suffer inadequate personnel.

The NCAA, because of the technical nature of its operation, is supposed to have more of qualified technical than administrative staff.

It was learned that almost all the safety inspectors are concentrated in Lagos and this is said to be against global standard practices which required that such inspectors be spread around other airports in the country for effective monitoring and enforcement of NCAA regulations.

Some of the technical staff who spoke on grounds of anonymity, wondered how the agency was getting money to service contract staff when it had often complained of lack of funds to employ more technical personnel, such as inspectors.

By Kenneth Ehigiator