Chinedu Eze
The Commissioner and CEO of the Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB), Akin Olateru, has assured that the agency will do everything possible to ensure safety in the industry.
Olateru, said the AIB would encourage and support organisations that promote safety in order to ensure that air transport maintains good record of zero accident.
Olateru, made this known after he was conferred with fellowship award by the Nigerian Institute of Safety Engineers (NISE), a division of Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE).
NISE, said Olateru who was among the top 10 professionals conferred with the honour was recognised for his professional performance since he was appointed Commissioner of AIB.
In his speech, Olateru lauded the leadership of the NISE for the honour.
He, however, lamented that Nigeria does not recognise hard work and punish top executives for non-performance, just as he vowed that he would consistently uphold ethics of the profession and offer maximum support to organisations that seek to promote safety in the sector.
He said the aviation industry was a very dynamic one, which required maximum concentration, stressing that with dedication, the industry would grow and make greater contribution to Nigeria’s economy.
Olateru further charged the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) to participate with the federal government in solving the power challenge in the country, stressing that several factories and closed shop because of lack of constant electricity supply.
He insisted that employment generation was hinged on effective power supply, which he lamented had taken the backseat in the country for almost four decades.
He noted that France generates uranium from Niger Republic to power energy, wondering why Nigeria, a close neighbor to the West African country could not do the same through it engineers.
“France is one of the biggest electricity generators via nuclear energy. France gets uranium from Niger Republic. We are a next door neighbour to Niger Republic. Why can’t we benefit from this? We have been on 10,000mw in the last 20 years. Something must be done urgently to address this gap.
“A lot of organisations have left Nigeria because of lack of electricity supply. Our institutions and turning out young graduates and engineers, but they are not employed have no work to do,” he said.
The NISE President, Adeyemi Oyedepo in his remarks said that Olateru’s performance in office was unprecedented and charged him to continue in that stead.
