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Following the secret handover of the General Aviation Terminal (GAT) to Bi-Courtney Aviation Services, Saturday evening, two aviation unions in the country, Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (ATSSSAN) and the National Union of Air Transport Association (NUATE) said they will mobilise their members to begin an industrial action on Wednesday.
President of ATSSSAN and NUATE, Benjamin Okewu and Safiyanu Dauda respectively, said their members, especially those in the fire and safety department would be withdrawn from operations at both domestic and international wings of Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.
“We are going to withdraw our firemen from their services, there would be no fire cover for both international and domestic operations, we will not allow take off and landing at the domestic wing but we would allow landing at the international wing”, Okewu told BusinessDay on phone. 
While describing the process as fraudulent, they accused Bi-Courtney of acquiring Nigerians property and the wealth of the nation to make it its own property at the detriment of others.
“If by Wednesday 23rd of September the place has been taken over, the whole workers of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) will commence strike action. Thereafter all other workers in the aviation industry will follow suit because we can not continue to allow Wale Babalakin to make Nigeria his own personal entity where whatever he wants will sail through, even at the detriment of the people. If they continue, we will ground the entire airspace to embarrass the country”, he said.
Meanwhile, Mohammed Tukur, general secretary of Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), the umbrella body for all domestic airlines, called on national security adviser to dispatch his men to GAT, saying domestic operation in that area is no longer safe.
“To me, the issue has gone beyond implementing an agreement, it has gone to court but since this is happening, I think the GAT is no longer safe for flight operations, anybody can undermine the present situation to plant dangerous items in aircraft, Arik is not the only airline operating from there, other airlines’ aircraft are not safe”, he told BusinessDay in a phone chat.
Harold Demuren, director general of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), said he would ensure that in all these, safety is not jeopardised, adding that “safety is not liberalised anywhere, it is a commercial agreement and an issue between FAAN and government, but we will ensure that safety is not tampered with, we are on ground”.