I know it's not always manners to make suggestions to tradespeople how to do their jobs, but greasing the tailshaft is a five minute job. Have you made the suggestion to him? It's a cheap option compared to a new MAF.
Also check he's getting a ridgy didge MAF. General opinion of aftermarket cheap MAFs is they're not worth the effort. You could also try just unplugging the MAF and taking a quick spin. If they're not connected, the ECU defaults to some standard values that will work well enough to tell you if the MAF is faulty.

