The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, on Thursday held a closed-door meeting in Abuja with striking workers of the Nigerian Meteorological Agency to address complaints over poor working conditions.
The meeting followed growing concerns over the impact of the strike on air travel across the country. Also present at the meeting were the Director General of NiMET, officials of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, and leaders of various aviation-related unions, including the National Union of Transport Employees and the Amalgamated Union of Public Corporation, Civil Service Technical and Recreational Services Employees.
NiMET workers began their strike two days ago to protest several unresolved issues, including the delay in implementing the new national minimum wage, exclusion of some staff from past allowances, and failure to provide essential training programmes.
The strike has disrupted flight activities at airports nationwide. Many passengers have been stranded at major airports such as Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja and Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos.
Air Peace, one of Nigeria’s leading airlines, announced a complete suspension of flights due to safety concerns caused by the strike. The decision was confirmed in a video showing Air Peace CEO, Allen Onyema, giving direct orders to stop all flights.
“If NiMET has not called off the strike, cancel every Air Peace flight now with immediate effect. People’s lives and the safety of our equipment and our crew are foremost,” Onyema said in the video.
He added, “I don’t care if other airlines are flying. Suspend every Air Peace flight nationwide. Look at the thunderstorm everywhere. Look at the kind of weather we are going into, and NiMET, which is supposed to provide these things, is on strike. Safety first.”
The Minister, Keyamo, is expected to provide an update on the outcome of the closed-door talks once discussions with the union leaders are concluded.
