FG should protect travel agencies from airlines' extortions

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Former Vice Chairman, National Association of Nigeria Travel Agencies (NANTA), Otunba Segun Adewale has called on the Federal Government to protect travel agencies from alleged extortion by airline operators.

NANTA is the Umbrella body of all travel agencies operating in Nigeria.

Otunba Adewale, who is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Aeroland Travels Limited, made this call, while speaking with newsmen at his in Ikeja, Lagos, urging that the Federal Government must put an end to frivolous fines being slammed on Nigerian travel agencies by foreign airlines, especially the Turkish Airline.

The former NANTA Vice Chairman argued that the government must take this step as, according to him, many travel agencies and businesses are closing shops due to the frivolous fines from airline operators which they found difficult to cope with.

This was just as he sadly recalled that the Turkish Airline recently slammed his firm with more than N56 million and $8,000 penalties over alleged breach of regulations, a development which made his firm to approach the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) with a petition against Turkish Airline over alleged debit deductions from the company’s account over infractions’ allegations.

He said following the intervention of NCAA, the Turkish Airline management pleaded to settle out of court.

“After retrieving our petition from NCAA and the airline’s pledge to refund the money, it stopped responding to all entreaties to reverse the illegal debit. The airline has even gone ahead to block our access to our system.

“I have the court option now and probably also approach the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to end this killing practices,” Adewale said.

Adewale, however, said that the matter had got to the court but the court gave an alternative of going through Arbitration and Mediation Centre, just as he noted that notwithstanding, the airline still debited his travel agency “another N11million for another penalty after about nine months the airline had collected money for value of the tickets issues by Aero Land Travels.”

“It is not only me, there are so many travel agencies they have destroyed, wrecked their businesses.

“If this travel agency doesn’t have the capacity, by now, our business would have been destroyed. This is how they are killing businesses.

“I am talking on behalf of those whose businesses have been killed. The airline is fleecing businesses on flimsy rules,” he said.

The former NANTA Vice Chairman, while noting that the total amount of money in dispute at the moment is about N69.49 million, therefore, called on the International Air Transport Association (IATA) saddled with the responsibility of regulating travel and aviation industry in Nigeria, to put a stop to all practices capable of pushing travel agencies out of business.

Otunba Adewale maintained that as an IATA licensed travel agency, his company can issue ticket originating from anywhere in the world from Nigeria, adding: “I can make a booking in Ghana or America and write the ticket in Nigeria with my licence.”

“All IATA licensed travel agencies have the liberty to issue tickets for airlines operating in Nigeria from anywhere,” he said.

According to him, due to Nigeria’s dollar policies in 2023, some foreign airlines blocked their inventory such that travel agencies were not able to book in the country, and had to open access in Nigeria’s neighbouring countries like Ghana.

He said that the airline wanted to sell in dollars but could not tell the Nigerian government, hence the blockage of their inventory and taking of their market out of Nigeria.

“So, because Aeroland Travels has office in Ghana, we do booking in Ghana on Turkish Airline. The airline didn’t restrict us then that we should not issue their tickets.

“It was funny that about a year after we have issued tickets on Turkish airline from outside Nigeria (Ghana) during this period, and payment made, the airline started sur-charging us, saying we could not issue such tickets from Ghana.

“The airline didn’t complain after one week, one month, nine months after the tickets were issued neither did it block the system because everything was automated not manual.

“We kept fighting back and forth until the money was reduced to about N60million through an invoice captioned ‘invalid charges.’

“This kind of action is indirectly killing travel agencies and businesses in Nigeria.

“So many travel agencies have left the businesses and been killed by foreign airlines due to unfounded charges, debits and invoices for minor offences,” he said.

President of NANTA, Mr. Yinka Folami, in his reaction, said that the body would soon arrange a meeting between the aggrieved and the airline, adding that the group led by him would continue to ensure good relationship with airlines.

According to him, there is room for reconciliation and intervention, expressing optimism that an amicable solution would be found eventually.

“We have intervened and we are optimistic we will find a good solution to the issue.

“The CEO of Aeroland Travels Limited, Mr Adewale, feels aggrieved at some penalties that were applied on him by the airline. Luckily, the representative of the airline in Nigeria is also a reconciliatory person.

“There are penalties that are issues by the airlines but the rules that guide us allow us to contest the penalties.

“There is room for reconciliation and intervention and we are already intervening and optimistic that we will find something amicable,” he said.

Meanwhile, efforts to get comment from the top official of Turkish Airline in Nigeria didn’t yield any results as the Nigerian representative said: “I couldn’t get feedback yet from my head office.

“However, if you would like to check the Turkish Airlines debit memo/booking regulations you may visit our website,” the official said.