The Federal Government has accused the concessionaire of the Murtala Mohammed Airports Terminal 2, Bi-Courtney Services Limited, of unilaterally increasing the Passenger Service Charge by 150 per cent.The Minister of Aviation, Mrs. Stella Oduah, who spoke on Monday in Abuja at a meeting convened by the Senate Committee on Aviation to look into the face-off between the company and the ministry, said the unilateral increase was not acceptable to the government.A statement issued by the Special Assistant (Media) to the Minister, Mr. Joe Obi, said the Federal Government had to stop Bi-Courtney from increasing the PSC from N1,000 to N2,500 not only to forestall the illegal and unilateral increment, but also to protect the travelling public from exploitation.However, the statement quoted the Chairman of Bi-Courtney, Dr. Wale Babalakin, as denying the allegation, insisting that approval was obtained from all relevant authorities before the PSC was increased.Oduah, however, said the ministry would set up a committee to work out an amicable resolution of the crisis in line with the recommendation of the Senator Hope Uzodinma-led Senate committee.She insisted that Bi-Courtney unilaterally increased the PSC by as much as 150 per cent without carrying out wide consultations with the guarantor as required by the concession agreement, the International Civil Aviation Organisations regulation and Nigerian Civil Aviation Authoritys approval.She said, The concession agreement dated April 24, 2003 provides in Article 11.3 that the concessionaire shall, in consultation with the guarantor and other relevant authorities, determine the tariffs, rents, fees and other charges collectible from users of the terminal throughout the concession period.The minister told the committee that in spite of the serious objection by the government to the effect that the concessionaire could not unilaterally increase charges without the requisite approval from the regulatory body, Bi-Courtesy went ahead to do so, stressing that the ministry could not stand idle and watch the terms of agreements flagrantly violated, thereby imposing economic burden on Nigerian air travellers.Oduah said she was perplexed that the concessionaire, who claimed to have secured an approval to charge the fee in 2006, could be in such a haste as not to spare additional time for consultations as required by the terms of the agreement.According to the minister, Bi-Courtney has contravened at least 15 clauses in the concession agreement.She said given the circumstance, she was under obligation to protect public interest in all transactions entered into under the public-private partnership arrangement.I may not know about law but I know about morality. I know about ethics and I know about fairness. We are partners; Bi-Courtney is not the sole partner in this matter and we must be seen to be treating one another as such. Bi-Courtney has not recognised us as such and this is unacceptable, she said.
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