2 women slump as Nigeria Airways pensioners shut down Airport road over N45bn pay

Two elderly women among former workers of Nigerian Airways protesting delay in the payment of their entitlement in Lagos on Tuesday slumped during protests. The women fainted when protesting workers blocked the domestic terminal of Murtala Muhammed Airport to cause massive traffic gridlock. The protesters, frustrated over the uncertainty surrounding the N45bn payment, started the […]

Two elderly women among former workers of Nigerian Airways protesting delay in the payment of their entitlement in Lagos on Tuesday slumped during protests.

The women fainted when protesting workers blocked the domestic terminal of Murtala Muhammed Airport to cause massive traffic gridlock.

The protesters, frustrated over the uncertainty surrounding the N45bn payment, started the protest from Skypower Catering where they were first addressed by the union leaders.

However the protest went awry when two of the retirees slumped. The first woman slumped in front of FAAN headquarters entrance while the other slumped around the domestic airport roundabout.

They were eventually revived by their colleagues who poured water on their head as they rolled on the floor.

It is observed both women showed signs of fatigue through the protest before they fainted.

Before they slumped, they kept on shouting the name of Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun whom they accused of standing on their entitlement approved since May last year by President Muhammadu Buhari.

The protesters sang solidarity songs with different placards such as "President Buhari, save us from Kemi Adeosun now"; " Mrs Adeosun, your action and inactions are man’s inhumanity to man"; "Madam Minister of finance, where is our pension and entitlements, pay us now"; among others.

 

Chairman, Aviation Union Ground Alliance (AUGA), Engr. Lukman Animashaun and Chairman of Nigeria Airways’ branch of the Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP), Comrade Sam Ezene said the protest would move to Abuja after Wednesday if concrete information emanated from government on the status of their entitlement.

Animashaun noted that in July last year when the federal government approved N2.7tr for contractors and pensioners through bond and promissory note issuance, out of the four groups concerned, only the Nigeria Airways pensions have been shrouded in uncertainty.

"Out of the four groups involved, two sets are being paid. The only group left is Nigeria Airways. That means there is a missing link somewhere. We have gone to everywhere in the National Assembly. We have met different committees in the House but we don’t know what is happening to our money and our people are dying on a daily basis," he said.

Comrade Nzene who disclosed that 850 of their members have died waiting for their entitlement said the protests would now take place every week in Lagos and Abuja as from Wednesday.

"If after tomorrow, government does not react, we will move to Abuja. Our members die daily, weekly and monthly. We will shut down Ministry of Financ,” he said.

Also speaking, another retiree, Andrew Iwalegwu said, "Remember in December, our colleagues in the northern zone, Abuja, Kano, Kaduna, Plateau and Makurdi did a protest in Abuja. Then the Minister of Aviation said we would smile during Christmas. We never knew he wanted to give us a bitter leaf Christmas. We never smiled, that money has not been paid.

"We have lost 850 of our members that are dead. We are going to bury another one tomorrow (Wednesday) because of this non-payment. So hopelessness, depression and disillusionment are killing our members.”