FAAN MD, aviation CEOs: CSOs kick against Buhari’s last minute appointment

The Civic Situation Room (CSR), a coalition of 100 pro-democracy groups has kicked against the last-minute appointments by former President Muhammadu Buhari in the aviation sector.

In a statement signed by its Executive Director, Vincent Unazi, the group described the timing and rationale as horrendous and unwarranted, adding that it will protest until the appointments are reversed.

Recall that Kabir Yusuf Mohammed was named as the new Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN).

Engineer Tayib Odunowo was also appointed the substantive Managing Director of the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA).

Similarly, a total of 28 directors and general managers were appointed across the five aviation agencies.

And Unazi said the appropriate action would have been to extend the tenures of the MDs, CEOs, and directors for 30 days while nominating new candidates for the incoming administration.

He alleged that ‘if not that the former minister, Hadi Sirika had wrong intent, he would have constituted governing boards long ago and not the show of shame he hurriedly did before exiting the office.

“For the entire duration of Sirika’s administration, he failed to appoint boards into the different agencies, thereby usurping their powers.

“But less than two days to the end of the administration, the boards were hurriedly inaugurated, and that was after new directors were appointed.

“There is nothing wrong in extending the tenures of the MD/CEOs for a further 30 days while the term of the existing directors would have been on a transitional basis.