By Kenneth Ehigiator
Aviation Minister, Mr. Babatunde Omotoba, would Tuesday meet with labour unions in aviation industry over the contentious handover of the General Aviation Terminal (GAT) of the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos, to Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Limited last weekend.

The Federal Government had, despite the protests embarked upon by the unions against the handover, went ahead to hand over the facility last Saturday, compelling the unions to issue an ultimatum to government to cancel the handover or face shut down of the nation’s airspace from tomorrow.

A source told Vanguard yesterday that the minister is very uncomfortable about the unions’ nationwide strike threat and invited them for a meeting to explain the reason government handed over the terminal, despite their initial opposition to Bi-Courtney’s claim to the terminal.

“Today’s meeting will not stop the strike. The union leaders are just going to attend the meeting to listen to what he will say. Why is he inviting them for a meeting now, after dismissing their position on the issue?” the source queried.

According to the source, “the position of the unions is simply that government reverses the handover because it did not follow due process.”

It was also learnt that the unions are looking at what would become the fate of staff of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) serving at the GAT, as they may not be retained by Bi-Courtney, which built MMA2 on build, operate and transfer (BOT) basis.

President of the National Union of Air Transport Employees (NUATE), Mr. Benjamin Okewu, and his counterpart in Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (ATSSSAN), Mr. Mohammed Safiyanu Dauda, had accused the minister of pandering to the wishes of Bi-Courtney after assuring them that handover of the terminal would be based on competitive bidding.