The Federal Competition and Consumers Protection Commission (FCCPC) is collaborating with the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) to address the sudden increase in airfare as well as issues of consumer negligence in the aviation sector in Nigeria.
Speaking on Thursday in Abuja while hosting the Director General of NCAA, Captain Nuhu Musa, the Executive Vice Chairman of FCCPC, Babatunde Irukera, stated that the aviation sector was one of the industry with the highest number of consumer compliants.
Irukera explained that “aviation ordinarily would have been the preferred choice of travel because of timeliness and safety. But in Nigeria today, it has by far become the most preferred method of travel not just for timeliness and safety comparative advantage the sector offers, but because of the depressed safety standards outside the aviation sector.
“When you have an industry of this nature, it becomes critical to the nationhood not just because of its contribution to the GDP, but because of its value to the society at large.
“If we needed any evidence of this, what has happened in the past week is the exact example. Immediately the information about the increase in airfare came to us, the volume of responses from the public were overwhelming.
“And the despondence we have seen underscores while aviation sector has become the backbone of the nation’s life” he stated.
The Executive Vice Chairman further explained that, “in the past days, two sensitive issues have been noted which come under the umbrella of fairness to consumers.
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“Fairness in the sense that how do we address the issues of delay and cancellation of flights in Nigeria! And the level of responses and sensitivity the airlines show when unavoidable delays and cancellation occurs?” he questioned.
Irukera said more recently, “what appears to be a coordinated conduct which restraint competition has completely distorted the market which has become the vital backbone of the nation.
“In reality, any type understanding or arrangement between competitors can only work in one direction, and that’s hardship and the lost of value for citizens.”
He noted that the aviation industry was the highest place of complaints and dissatisfaction and hope that the Committee will work with the airlines to understand their mode of operations as well as the challenges to create a balance.
On his part, the DG of NCAA, Capt. Nuhu Musa promised to ensure that service providers within the aviation sector respect consumers rights in their mode of operations
He attributed the recent hike in airfare to high cost of aviation fuel and foreign exchange.
The DG said the Joint Committee from FCCPC and NCAA will investigate the price increase to ascertain whether the airlines followed due process.
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