Funds constraint hampering accident investigation – NSIB

The Director General of the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB), Captain Alex Badeh Jnr has said that the agency has been unable to carry out its statutory responsibility as allocation from the Ticket Sales Charge (TSC) are enough.

According to the agency, it is yet to receive any funds from other agencies that are supposed to also fund its operations.

Captain Badeh lamented that a recent proposal at a public hearing by the House of Representative committee on Aviation to further reduce the NSIB current 6% allocation to 4% is a recipe for disaster just as he affirmed that safety is a sine qua non of a successful aviation industry.

Speaking at a virtual media engagement with journalists over the weekend, the NSIB DG bemoaned the refusal of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) to remit to it the 3% funding meant for NSIB from the Cabotage Vessel Financing Fund (CVFF).

The CVFF was a financing mechanism established to strengthen Nigerian indigenous shipping capacity and enable Nigerians to participate more effectively in coastal and inland shipping.

Also, he disclosed that despite the agency’s prominent role in the investigation of accidents and serious incident in the country’s rail sector, it is yet to receive any fund from the Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC), adding that the lack from funding affect its operations in the area of acquiring equipment, training and capacity building.

Speaking on the proposed slash on its TSC revenue, he said “The NSIB already gets the lowest percentage of all the agencies. With this proposed reduction, it is going to severely affect the NSIB operations. The Bureau is already grappling with shortfalls in its current allocation; an additional cut is unsustainable.”

He added that “If you think safety is expensive, try an accident, we are all in this sector and we know that such a proposal is going to affect the NSIB negatively, it is not a workable solution to any issue.”