The federal government Thursday ordered the immediate suspension of the controversial Nigerian Air and the airports’ concession projects carried out by the immediate past Minister of Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika.
Sirika had in the twilight of the administration, hurriedly carried out the two projects which had continued to attract scathing criticisms from stakeholders.
Announcing the new twist, Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development Festus Keyamo, SAN, said following reports he received since assuming office, he would have to brief President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on the many pressing issues in the sector before further action.
Controversies have continued to trail the Nigeria Air handled by Sirika with industry experts describing it as a rip-off on Nigerians.
They also said the concession of the Abuja and Kano airports at the twilight of Buhari’s administration supervised by the erstwhile minister was fraught with fraud.
Speaking while on a tour of the Lagos airport, the minister ordered all foreign airlines operating from the old terminal at the international wing of the Murtala Mohammed Airport to relocate to the newly constructed Chinese terminal before the first of October this year.
The exercise he explained was to enable the federal government carry out the proposed renovation of the over four-decade old terminal.
Keyamo also said two private aircraft hangars at the International wing of the Lagos airport, the Dominion and EAN hangars, would be relocated to pave way for expansion of the new terminal in order to allow wide bodied aircraft access the new terminal.
“You can see that the complaint of foreigners and Nigerians coming into Nigeria has been with the old terminal, the old terminal is an eyesore, things are not working there but we have this new terminal that the Chinese built. Nigerians are asking why they are not using this new terminal. The simple reason is that how this international Gateway terminal was designed without a provision for the big planes, no avio-bridges that can link the big planes, that has been the problem. Meanwhile, 60 percent of FAAN revenue comes from the Lagos airport.
“The Lagos gateway is the first impression you get when you come into the country, the solution is that we must use what we have for now. I am giving international airlines till 1st of October to move from the old terminal to the new terminal. We are going to shut down the old terminal and sort out all the issues regarding renovation of the terminal.
“There are issues with concession and all of that for now, I have suspended all of that, including the issue of Nigeria Air. I have given directive to suspend everything until I brief Mr. President as to what is happening regarding all of these noise. The duty I owe Mr. President is honesty and rightly advise him, as I am looking at all the agreements and everything that was signed to correctly inform him. I owe my total loyalty to Nigerians to have comfortable aviation services.
“For now, the temporary arrangements we have is, for the comfort of Nigerians, we have to find a way to use the new terminal. Like in many other countries, we have to get emergency procurement to buy big buses and move passengers to where the big planes can stop for both arrivals and departures, so that Nigerians can have some form of comfort.
“The long term plan is that we are going to find a way to build avio-bridges for the big Aircraft coming in and that means some of those private hangars will have to go for public purpose, we have to relocate them, if we have to do anything for them, so that we can have a beautiful, functional gateway to Nigeria. For now, I am giving them till the first of October to shut down the old terminal so that we can use the new terminal,” the minister said
