Hajj: NAHCON gets another knock over attempted exemption of Skypower

The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) has committed another blunder in an attempt to prevent the Skypower Express Airways from participating in the ongoing hajj operations to Saudi Arabia.

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Skypower Express Airways, Capt. Muhammed Joji, confirmed the developments to TW.

He explained that if not for the intervention of the Ministry of Aviation, NAHCON was not going to allow Skypower Express, which is a registered indigenous charter operator, to participate in the Hajj operations.

He insisted that NAHCON had no right to interfere in charter operations, stressing that the Saudi authorities only recognises Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) in hajj operations.

“If there is any problem, Saudi Arabia authorities will only talk with the Foreign Affairs Ministry or the CAA.

In that case, NAHCON operation is localised here. It has no business in Saudi Arabia.

Also, NAHCON has no business in international pilgrims and that was cleared by the ministry. The ministry warned them about their interference. The foreign affairs and CAA can overrule you,” said Joji.

The Commission has been criticised by the nation’s Ministry of Aviation for not having the statutory right to exempt an indigenous charter operator – Skypower Express – from the 2019 Hajj operations.

This comes barely 48 hours after Med-View Airline, another Nigerian (commercial) operator, accused the commission of contract breach.

The ministry insisted that Skypower Express, as a Nigerian carrier, had met all the necessary provisions, rules and regulations of the country and deserved to be allowed to benefit from charters, ad hoc flights, just like Flynas, a charter operator in Saudi Arabia and any other interested charter operator around the world.

TW gathered that the Ministry queried NAHCON’s unilateral decision in the exemption saga, insisting that it did not liaise with the ministry or other governmental authorities as the regulations demand.

One of the letters, dated August 9, 2019 and signed by Legal Adviser/ Aviation, S.S. Liman for Permanent Secretary, insisted that the ministry of aviation was superintendent overall issues of civil aviation operations in Nigeria, noting that the Bilateral Air Service Agreement (BASA) agreed by the ministry between the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was flouted in the commission’s decision.

According to Liman, charter services were not discriminated by the BASA operational between the two countries, rather, it subjected the same to the approval of the contracting parties’ aeronautical authorities.

The letter added: “The decision whether or not Skypower Express or any airline operators/companies of Nigeria should or can operate charter flight to Saudi is not for the commission to take as it is clearly beyond its mandate.

“Section 4 (i) (b) of the Commission Act is referred to. That decision can only be made by the aeronautical authority of Nigeria (the Federal Ministry of Transportation).”

Earlier, NAHCON in a letter dated August 2, 2019, with the reference number NAHCON/A1/18/III/341 had arrogated to the commission alone the powers to determine who participated in the activities of hajj operation in all its ramifications, citing 4 (a) of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (Establishment) Act 2006 as its authority.

In another letter dated July 30, 2019, from the Federal Ministry of Transportation with the reference number: FMA/ATMD/0186/S.5/XIII/257 and signed by Engr. H. Musa, Director, Air Transport Management on behalf of Permanent Secretary, complained about the exemption of Skypower Express from operating as a charter operator during the exercise.

The letter had complained about the directive of NAHCON to licensing companies to patronise only scheduled carriers or the three carriers approved by NAHCON.

The three carriers, according to the letter, were Max Air, Med-View and Flynas.

The letter, however, referred to the subsisting BASA between Nigeria and Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, which confirmed that airlines from both countries were allowed to enjoy charter operations whenever the need arises in accordance with the Para E of the BASA arrangement.

The letter insisted that Skypower Express, as one of the airlines from Nigeria to KSA, had the right to benefit from the provisions of the BASA rights, including charter operations, saying that same right was being enjoyed by Max Air, MED-View and Flynas.

The letter added: “More so, foreign airlines operating into Nigeria have always been asking for charter/ad hoc flights during high seasons like hajj, umrah, Christmas and end of the year period, which the ministry has been granting in accordance with subsisting BASA between our countries.

“Skypower Express has met all the necessary provisions, rules and regulations of Nigeria and deserved to be allowed to benefit from charter/ ad hoc flights of Nigeria.” 

Joji, the Skypower boss, confirmed that the ministry ensured its eventual participation in the exercise, adding that he operated three flights out of Nigeria with 1,893 pilgrims, apart from the ones airlifted from Guinea Bissau and Sierra Leone.

He, however, decried “high corruption in NAHCON,” calling for proper cleansing of the commission.

“There is too much corruption in NAHCON exercise. That place must be properly cleansed,” he said.