The National Assembly (NASS) has expressed displeasure over the non-remittance of over N300billion debts charges to the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), especially by the local airlines.
The NASS yesterday alleged that the airlines deliberately withheld levies, which include landing and parking charges and Passenger Service Charge (PSC) collected by FAAN on behalf of the Federal Government.
A reliable source close to the agency confided in our correspondent yesterday that FAAN is owed over N300bn by indigenous carriers alone.
The source, however, said that some of the airlines that owed these debts may have closed shop, but lamented that some of the existing airlines too had showed lackadaisical attitude to prompt remittance of levels.
Mr. Nnolim Nnaji, House Committee Chairman on Aviation said that it was pertinent for the airlines to consistently pay their debts.
Nnaji, in a statement made available to our correspondent, said that Capt. Rabiu Yadudu, the Managing Director FAAN disclosed this on Thursday during an interactive session with the committee at the National Assembly.
Nnaji, who is representing Nkanu East/West Federal Constituency of Enugu State had summoned Yadudu to explain the rationale behind the 100 per cent increase in passenger service charge announced last week by the airports’ authority in preparations for the partial lifting of domestic flights across the six geopolitical zones of the country.
The service charges were raised from N1,000 on a local flight to N2,000 and from $50 to $100 on international routes.
The committee though convinced that the increase in PSC was inevitable based on the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic on the industry, however, lamented to learn that one of the indigenous airlines was yet to remit to FAAN the sum of N13 billion collected on behalf of the authority.
