By Chinelo Obogo
The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has commended its consumer protection staff, who it says often work under challenging conditions to address passenger complaints at airports across the country.
During a recent television appearance, the agency’s Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, Mr. Michael Achimugu, said that despite allegations of extortion at airports, no reports of misconduct have been filed against the consumer protection staff and that since the launch of the consumer protection portal on September 19th 2024, passengers experience, service delivery and responses from airlines had significantly improved.
He said the dedication of these officers, whom he noted frequently work late nights at airports, often without adequate security; have shown commitment to serving passengers and combating corruption within the aviation sector.
“I make bold and I’m proud to say that the NCAA’s officials at the airport are one of the very few, if not the only agency that have never been accused of extorting travellers at the airport. It makes me very proud of my officers and then, of course, the work that the flight operations and adjudication unit have been doing,” he said.
Speaking at the launch of the portal last September, the acting NCAA Director General, Captain Chris Najomo, said the portal is part of measures put in place by the agency to improve consumer protection and is playing a pivotal role that ensures airline passengers in the country receive better information and an avenue to address their grievances at the airport.