By now you may have heard that Harold Demuren, director general of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, has been fired. Demuren, who sits on the Foundation’s Board of Governors, had been director general since 2005 and made significant progress in advancing aviation and aviation safety in Nigeria. The Foundation has been actively involved with public and private support for Demuren, and we are saddened by his removal.
It has been reported that Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan removed Demuren from office because of two fatal commercial aviation accidents that occurred in Nigeria last year — reasoning that we find incomprehensible. No amount of government oversight could have prevented those tragedies. Demuren actively spoke out for reform and infrastructure improvements and set higher operational standards in Nigeria. He constantly advocated best practices for operators and worked for the development of adequate standards for better and safer service for the p…
