By John Myers Jr., Staff Reporter
Henry
JAMAICA LABOUR Party (JLP) spokesperson on transport Mike Henry has described the Government's takeover of the management and ownership of Air Jamaica as a "small step", saying that much more was needed to ensure the viability of the airline.
Speaking with The Gleaner yesterday, Mr. Henry said: "Changing management alone is not enough ... until I know if the government is coming up with the necessary capital or how it is going to find the capital, my immediate answer would be that it is merely a small step."
DEBT FOR EQUITY
He said the Government over the years had been exchanging debt for equity, adding that the airline is now badly in need of "new and fresh capital".
"Even those figures Air Jamaica is telling us now that it needs, I think it needs more than that," Mr. Henry said. "Part of the problem of Air Jamaica has been that they tried to expand and borrow capital rather than sourcing equity capital."
The JLP, in a release issued jointly by Mr. Henry and the Opposition spokesman on finance, Audley Shaw, yesterday urged Finance Minister Omar Davies "to take all the necessary steps to ensure that Air Jamaica is brought to profitability by applying aggressive cost-cutting measures and improving efficiency." Mr. Henry further stated that the new management needed to take instant decisions as any delay would likely result in the airline being downgraded to a 'Category 2' status by the United States-based Federal Aviation Authority (FAA).
DECISION-MAKING IS CRITICAL
"Urgent decision-making is critical," he continued. "especially in light of current challenges being faced with escalating fuel prices and the increasing threat of terrorism."
And in the restructuring process, Mr. Henry said he would like to see more of the stakeholders involved. "For instance, is this new board going to address the role of the pilots and the employees? Is it going to offer shareholding to them so that they become involved?" he asked.
Mr. Henry said the Opposition, despite raising questions and demanding answers on the operation of the airline, was not privy to any of the decision- making process. He said he would be writing to the finance minister to seek clarification and details of the restructuring exercise.
