A Civil Society Group, Centre for Leadership Excellence and Transparency (CELT) has lauded the outstanding and superlative performance of CAPTAIN CHRIS ONA NAJOMO, the Acting Director General and Chief Executive Officer of Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA).
In a statement credited to the group’s Executive Director, Dr. Gabriel Itodo, the group urges President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to confirm his appointment in the interest of the sector..
They explained that, the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority is a very fundamental Agency of government, saddled with the responsibility of regulating the aviation sector in Nigeria, with twenty (20) airports and many regulated airstrips and heliports; 23 active domestic airlines; 554 licensed pilots; 913 licensed engineers and 1700 cabin personnel.
Noting that, Nigeria being Africa’s most populous country is an important destination for over 22 foreign carriers, and currently have Bilateral Air Services Agreements with over 78 countries.
They argued that such a large and onerous responsibility demands a person of Captain Najomo’s standing, pedigree and established tested and confirmed track-record of performance.
Describing Captain Najomo as a game changer, the group noted that to effectively tackle all the onerous responsibilities, he deliberately set in motion a very formidable working team of directors in the following areas ICT, Audit, SERVICOM, Information and Com. Technology, Audit Department, Other Directorates include, Airworthiness Standard (DAWS), Operations, Licensing & Training Standards (DOLTS), Aerodrome & Airspace Standards (DAAS), Air Transport Regulation (DATR), Aviation Security Regulation (DAS), Public Affairs and Consumer Protection (DPA/CP), Finance and Accounts (DFA), Human Resources and Administration (DHR&A), Corporate Service (DCS), Legal Services/ Company Secretary (DLS/CS), and Special Duties (DSD).
In a fresh start upon assumption of office barely twelve months ago, the NCAA Acting Director General accordingly, commenced the Registration of Aviation Fuel Suppliers, Renewal of Air Transport Licence (ATL), Renewal of Airline Operating Permit (AOP), Renewal of Permit for Aerial Aviation Services (PAAS) and Renewal of Air Travel Organizers’ Licence, all key components which will assist to both mitigate against inefficiency in service delivery as well as accelerate effectiveness and reliability in achieving the Renewed Hope Initiative of President Bola Tinubu as well as the Ministerial 5-point agenda of Festus Keyamo, SAN.
They are of the opinion that, his unprecedented achievements in air safety records, introduction of various innovations and reformations in the aviation sector are eloquent testimonies of his determination and doggedness.
To them, it is his demonstration of such extraordinary and exemplary leadership that earned him instant recognition, several accolades and numerous awards including; ‘Icon of Diligent in Service’’ by the West African Youth Parliament (WAYP), an apex youth organization that spans 16 West African countries, ‘’Aviation Icon of the Year’’ given by Nigeria Most Influential Award (NMIA) 2024, ‘’Award in Strategic Leadership and Impact’’ given by the National Association of Air Traffic Engineers (NAATE), reinforcing the fact that he is an outstanding enigma and performer Par Excellence.
It is worth noting that the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) conducted the Regulatory Reform Accelerator (RRA) Process after which all Federal Government agencies were rated. Under Capt. Najomo’s stewardship, NCAA skyrocketed into the top 10 on the scoreboard with an impressive 98.5%.
The group also lauded his deliberate and ambitious leadership which has provided improved aviation infrastructural facilities at the airports’ including state-of-the-art navigational aids, modern weather forecasting equipment and highly skilled manpower to ensure safety and comfort of the flying public.
In the area of coordination and collaboration with the various directors, the group gave Capt. Najomo a clean bill, noting that he has not only effectively implemented his various mandates but has changed the workplace ambience, boosting the morale’s of the workforce and greatly and enhancing improved productivity.
Eulogizing further, they pointed at the payment of backlog of housing arrears to all staff, that accumulated for an upward of ten years period, he vigorously tackled staff stagnation issues, leading to inter-directorate deployment to open up bottlenecks in the structure, and subsequent promotion of stagnated staff from GL.14 to GL.15, and the clearance of the huge backlog of relocation allowance due to staff consequent upon the movement of the NCAA headquarters from Lagos to Abuja as part of his achievements aimed at boosting the morale of the staff.
“A highly dynamic down-to-earth leader, Najomo operates an open-door policy and a robust labour-relations, as he host regular engagement either formally or informally with the NCAA unions aimed at confidence-building, dialogue, peace and stability in the workforce.
These deliberate efforts has led to the establishment of the “Staff Recognition and Reward Award”, an innovation which aims at celebrating and giving awards of recognition to deserving staff. This singular development has spurred the workforce leading to improved dedication and enhanced greater productivity of the staff.” they stated.
stressing further that, Najomo also inaugurated committees to review the NCAA Scheme of Service and Staff Conditions of Service as part of improved staff welfare, with a view at ensuring a better working condition for staff of the Agency, while ensuring the delivery of Indoctrination Course for the personnel in DAWS, DOLTS, DAAS and Legal and the outstanding mandatory Courses for FSG personnel at BON Hotel, Kano. Believing that all these actions have enhanced competency and motivation within the middle cadre management staff.
Describing Capt. Nojomo as a transparent and honest leader in line with the Zero-tolerance to corruption of the President Tinubu’s administration, they stated that he created both the Project Monitoring and Contract Evaluation Unit (PMCEU), and the Quality Assurance Department (QAD), so as to ensure probity and transparency and also promote compliance with technical and non-technical policies and procedures within and in the execution of NCAA’s projects.
The statement further reads, “His approach ensures that operators thrive while passengers enjoy safety and reliability, in a renewed sense of purpose and efficiency and robust international engagements and practical demonstrations of compliance to International Aviation safety standards which has compelled the respect of the international community.
He has judiciously followed up with the inauguration of a committee to draft the Authority’s first Quality Assurance document and also engaged with foreign airlines in collaboration with the FCCPC and NANTA to ensure the unblocking of lower inventory fares and cheaper fares and the commencement of the Lagos-London operations by Air Peace.
Capt. Nojomo has also initiated a complete re-evaluation of all holders of Permit for Non-Commercial Flight (PNCF) with adherence to the terms and conditions of their permits.
He also created a dedicated unit for the Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS) which will drive the growth of the RPAS industry, as well as institute a simplified certification process as a derivative of the ease-of-doing business policy without compromising standards, the statement added. In pursuit of his vision for pro-active risk-based oversight, the NCAA collaborated with APS Aerospace USA to establish a Flight Data Centre. This milestone facility was commissioned by the Honourable Minister.
A highly skilled and proficient disciplinarian, the enthused that Capt. Najomo, insistence on Service providers to meet up with the Air Operator Certificate (AOC) requirement certification and those unable to meet up are summarily excluded from the sector has entrenched sanity in the industry. The Acting DG extended this commitment to aerodrome certification, where the NCAA engaged FAAN robustly on the closure of Findings, ultimately leading to the re-certification of MMIA, Lagos and NAIA, Abuja. This has brought Nigeria into compliance with the ICAO Standards for certification of international airports. We are confident that the other international airports are to follow, but Capt. Najomo made it clear that they would only be certificated if they meet the regulatory requirements.
They itemized other reforms to include; reduction of the total time for certifications, aircraft registrations and provision of technical services, and also enhancement of the publication of the list of certified Heliports on the NCAA website with proficient update, and the deployment of EMPIC-EAP as the regulatory software for selected modules and also trained the super-users.
All International Aviation Safety Regulation are being timely complied with; the ICAO conducted the Universal Security Audit Programme (USAP) — Continuous Monitoring Approach (CMA) of Nigeria’s civil aviation security system in March, 2024. The Authority led the charge comprising FAAN and other stakeholders through this 2-week intensive audit. All AVSEC national documents such as NCASP, NCASTP, NCASCP, NCASQCP and NCP have been reviewed and approved in accordance with ICAO requirements.
They hailed the promotion of transparency and accountability in procurement matters, citing the establishment of the Procurement Department and the relocation from the DGCA’S Office to the DCS as one achievement that is very dear to Nigerians, as it has brought about renewed vigour in the prompt resolution of customer issues, necessitating the rebranding of the Consumer Protection Department for public awareness and effective service delivery. Also, there is prompt ticket refunds and payment of compensation for flight disruptions or baggage issues, all these have enhanced better passenger experience for Nigerian passport holders by foreign airlines.
Reiterating that the acting DG of NCAA is one man whose short stay in office has proven that with determination, our problems are surmountable. The result-oriented leadership that he has provided in the Aviation industry, is a clear and eloquent testament to what we all can achieve as a nation, if given the opportunity and same is matched with actions.
The outstanding leadership and unprecedented sterling achievements of CAPTAIN CHRIS ONA NAJOMO stands him out as deserving to be fully confirmed as the Director General and Chief Executive Officer of Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA). He has demonstrated a depth of unequal professionalism, leadership, industry, experience, and managerial excellence in the discharge of his duties and this has made him an invaluable asset to the nation’s aviation industry. No one changes a winning team, but rather preserves and make the team more formidable for better outings, they concluded.