The Transport Minister, Rotimi Amaechi, has advised state governments to be concerned with projects that would profit the generality of the narion’s poor and down – trodden instead of pursuing ventures that further serve the affluent’s interest.
Amaechi specifically cited airport project as one example no governor should undertake to build now unless the socio – economic fortune of such a state and the country can support new or additional airport.
The former Governor of Rivers state who gave the advice at the weekend in Abeokuta, the Ogun state capital, while fielding questions from reporters noted that airport project is elitist and would not relieve the poor of their suffering.
The Minister who was in Abeokuta on an assessment visit to some projects executed by the Ogun State government on behalf of the Federal Government, added that Nigeria already has many airports that have proven to be unviable.
“Governors should focus on those things that would improve on the lives of the poor, not the rich. It’s the rich people that fly plane. How many poor people know where airport is much more fly an aircraft?”
“I believe that the construction of airport should be backed by the growth of the economy. There are some airports that are constructed just for the governors to land and take off. That won’t be the idea for me as minister of transportation.
“I’d prefer that all airports that are constructed would be backed by economic demand. And when we look at the numbers, if the numbers add up…We would not discourage Ogun State if you like to construct an airport, but we would like to advise that they should look at the economics of an airport,” Amaechi said.
He however assured of Federal Government’s commitment towards the completion of new terminals of the nation’s four international airports in Abuja, Lagos, Port Harcourt and Kano.
The Minister also assured that the Federal Government would support Ogun state if it wants to build an airport though he was in the state to ascertain some of the roads constructed by the state government on behalf of Federal Government.
According to him, the construction of railway between Lagos and Calabar as well as Lagos and Kano would commence this year.
“I am convinced that most of the roads have been constructed. By the time we write the report, we have engineers, we have people from the Public Procurement Department, they would assess the cost and put it in the report,” he said.
But Governor Ibikunle Amosun in his remarks solicited the support of the minister in ensuring the completion of the abandoned airport project in Ewekoro local government area of the state.
“It’s being built by Federal Government. In fact it is the oldest airport they have in Nigeria. It was done in 1940/41; that was what they were using during the World War and that’s why we have the Commonwealth cemetery there. Somehow, after the war, nobody said anything about it.
“But 12 years ago, Federal Government started again. Everything has been done. Contractors have even been mobilised to site before they stopped funding it.
“Ogun State is the industrial hub of Nigeria. There is no nation that would develop if the industries are not there. Even in the radius of 5km, in US, we have even about four airports, we have even examples in London.
“But for us, it is not just for the governor to land; people would want to move their goods and services, people will want to come and that’s why we need an airport here. And in any case, the airport in Lagos, where can they expand to? It’s congested.”
Tag: airport
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Amaechi advises state govts against building new airports
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‘Allegations on Abiola Airport ill-informed’
•Osun PDP calls for probe of project
The consultant to the Osun State government on the M.K.O. Abiola International Airport at Ido Osun, Mr Wemimo Adebajo, has said the allegation of inflating the cost of the project is ill-informed.
The expert, who addressed reporters during an inspection of facilities at the airport, was reacting to a statement credited to the state’s chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) that the cost of the project had been inflated by Rauf Aregbesola administration from N4.5 billion to N15.5 billion.
He said the claim was far from the truth.
Adebajo said the airport would rank among those with the longest runways in Nigeria, adding that the current site of the project was the first place where aviation activities took place in West Africa.
According to him, with the level of work at the airport, the state government had spent N2.7 billion from the revised N11 billion.
Adebajo said the project had reached 25 per cent.
The consultant said the West African Frontier Force (WAFF) was conveyed from the Ido-Osun Aerodrome during the World War II, adding: “For this reason, the state government wants to make the airport the best in Nigeria, if not in Africa.”
He said the tour was to ensure that reporters were adequately informed about the work done to situate the criticisms of the opposition in proper context.
Adebajo said the airport’s runway, which would soon be laid with 500 millimetre (mm) asphalt, is 3.5 kilometre long with 12.3 metres excavation.
The expert said it would be re-filled with laterite.
He added that both sides of the runway are equipped with water pipes, which would be the first of its kind in Nigeria.
Adebajo noted that with such features, the airport would have been equipped with facilities that would make emergency fire fighting readily available near the runway, in case of any emergency landing or fire.
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Minister orders probe of security breach at Abuja airport
Minister of State for Aviation Hadi Sirika has ordered the suspension of three top officials of Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, over an incident involving Turkish Airlines at the airport.
Mr. Sirika told reporters in Abuja yesterday that after listening to explanations by the airport officials on the incident which happened at about 11pm on December 24.
He said the ministry ordered thorough investigation to ascertain the cause of the breach and why the airline brought in passengers without their luggage.
The suspended officials, according to him, are the Airport Manager, Terminal Manager and Head of Airport Security, who were ordered to hand over to their next in rank pending the conclusion of the investigation, according to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).
He stated that the action of the passengers, forcing their way into the tarmac and blocking the aircraft from taking off was a security breach which must not be condoned.
Sirika said: “There has been an unfortunate incident where some agitated passengers of the Turkish Airlines arrived without their luggage making them to force their way into the tarmac which is a breach of security.
“The explanation given is not satisfactory because the primary purpose of the government is to ensure safety of lives and property of its citizens.
“The cardinal objective of this administration is to secure the country and manage it and we cannot fail in aviation and we cannot fail in this important assignment at a very important point.
“We have ordered for the investigation into the matter immediately and all the people that are manning the various places; Airport Manager, Terminal Manager and Head of Security, should handover to the next man in rank pending the outcome of the investigation.
“As to the airline also, the Consumer Protection Unit of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has been ordered to find out what happened, how compliant they are and deal with it accordingly.”
He added that the ministry was yet to get the flight manifest to be able to ascertain the number of passengers involved.
According to him, the passengers got agitated and got access into the prohibited area because there was security lapse.
The minister stated that the nation’s aviation sector had the capacity to grow, adding that it was already showing signal that it could tremendously contribute to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
According to him, aviation is carrying by value, 31 per cent of the world cargo which makes it a very important industry as the fastest means of transportation.
“With specific to Nigeria, you could see how we grew from Kano Airport where the first plane landed in the country to about 22 Federal Government owned airports plus several other private owned airports.
On the whole, aviation I can say has grown to an appreciable level in the country and it has the capacity to grow more which is important to the economy of the country,” he said.
Mr. Sirika added that the country also had good manpower such as pilots and engineers to move the industry forward.
He disclosed that the government was determined to deliver a more vibrant and efficient aviation sector in 2016 by making safety, security and efficiency its watch word with regards to transportation.
“It is not about the beauty of the airports or planting flowers or other vanities, it is about safety, security and efficiency as far as aviation is concerned,’’ he said.
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N17b airport unnecessary, says Maku
A former Minister of Information, Mr. Labaran Maku, yesterday advised Governor Tanko Al-Makura of Nasarawa State against building a N17 billion airport in Lafia.
He said instead of the airport, the governor should provide other infrastructure across the state.
Maku, the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) , addressed reporters in Wakama, Akun Development Area.
He said the amount could be used to provide other infrastructure to provide jobs, fight poverty and boost living standard.
Maku said: “What Lafia needs is an airstrip, where aircraft can land in case personalities may visit the state for one reason or the other.
“For Al-Makura to build a N17 billion airport in Kwandare, his village, is not the priority of the people.
“The money can be used for factories, industries, rural roads, potable water and electricity.
“There is a high rate of poverty among the people, especially at the grassroots, a problem compounded by lack of roads, electricity and good water.”
He said the Federal Government and aviation authority should reverse the construction of an airport in Lafia “at this time of hardship.”
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Minister orders probe into use of ladder at Bauchi airport
•NAHCO denies involvement
Minister of State for Aviation Hadi Sirika has directed an immediate investigation into the use of ladder by Aero Contractors Airlines for passengers’ disembarkment at the end of a charter flight to Bauchi at the weekend.
The directive was contained in a statement in Abuja yesterday by the ministry’s Deputy Director of Press and Public Affairs, James Odaudu.
The statement said the minister received a report indicating that the airline used a ladder to disembark passengers from a Boeing 737 aircraft at the Bauchi airport on Saturday.
The minister stated that the act was inconsistent with Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations (NCARs), International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) and Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPS).
The investigation is expected to determine the causes of the incident with a view to developing and implementing measures that would prevent a reoccurrence of the unsafe procedure that exposed passengers to risk of injury.
Sirika noted that if the airline is found culpable, sanctions within extant laws and regulations would be applied on it.
He assured the traveling public that the Ministry of Transport in collaboration with Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) would ensure strict adherence to the civil aviation regulations as well as ICAO and SARPS.
He added that he would not shriek in his responsibility to ensure a safe and secure air transport services.
But the Nigerian Aviation Handling Company Plc (NAHCO) yesterday said it was not responsible for ground handling of the airline’s flights at Bauchi airport.
A statement issued by its spokesman, Mr. Tayo Ajakaye, said: ”The attention of the NAHCO has been drawn to reports making rounds on the social media to the effect that it was its failure to provide handling service to one of its esteemed clients, Aero Contractors, that caused passengers of the airline to disembark with ladder at the Bauchi Airport.
“Nothing can be further from the truth. NAHCO does not have operations in Bauchi. This fact is well-known to Aero and all our client airlines. So, for Aero to embark on that chartered flight to Bauchi, it definitely would have made its own private arrangements.
“Aero’s statement in this regard is particularly clear. It never mentioned NAHCO, nor for that matter, any ground handler as the reason it had to innovate.”
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Infrastructure upgrade at Asaba Airport
the Delta State Government has commenced a massive reconstruction of the Asaba International Airport, in a move to restore the glory of the aviation facility and to address the concerns raised by the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), which led to an embarrassing downgrade of the airport earlier in the year.
Recall that the NCAA, on April 27, downgraded the Asaba International Airport over issues ranging from inadequate training of technical staff, lack of perimeter fencing, flooding and uneven surface of the runway and other technical issues.
By that directive, only Dash 8 – Q 400 planes or their equivalent will continue to operate through the airport until the issues raised are resolved while all Boeing 737s and jets of similar category are barred.
To underscore government’s commitment towards addressing the airport’s infrastructural deficits, Governor Ifeanyi Okowa had, within a week of assuming office, held a meeting with ULO Consultants Limited – the contractor handling the construction of the airport project and the fruits of that meeting are evident – all the contractors are back on site toiling to meet agreed timelines.
Governor Okowa had, on September 11, this year sought and received approval from the state’s legislature for a loan of N5.021 billion for the reconstruction of the airport.
Specifically, the state legislature approved the request for guaranty of a loan facility to be availed ULO Consultants Limited in respect of the accelerated rehabilitation of the Asaba Airport.
Hitherto, the airport could only be accessed from the North-Eastern direction because a 23 meter high hill blocked access to the runway of airplanes from the South-west direction.
The hill has been reduced with a gentle 2.5 meters gradient sloping to the runway. With the leveling of the hill, the signal posts at the Southwestern end of the runway is now visible -a situation that was patently in breach of international standards.
The airport has two signal beacons at both ends of the runway standing approximately at 2.4 kilometers apart from the terminal building. Another grey area is the absence of a perimeter fence around the airport. But the problem is being addressed, with work having reached advanced stage.
Project Manager, Ali Bou Ghawi who spoke with Niger Delta Report revealed that over 40 per cent of the work has been done, noting that work will further intensify with cessation of the rains.
His words: “We have completed the major work of surveying and pegging the entire area. Clearing of the entire forest surrounding the airport has reached advanced stage. What is left is for the real fencing work to begin and with the lull in the wet season, we will start soon.”
Ghawi noted that his company was adding a new nine-centimeter layer of asphalt which was being laid on the tarmac to reinforce the existing runway. Also, work on another control tower to complement the operational efficiency of the existing one has reached advanced stage.
The engineer said the tower, which has already reached the second floor, would complement the existing Control Tower in line with International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) standard.
Beside the airport control tower, international airports are required to have a second tower for the purpose of monitoring local weather as well controlling incoming flights and departures.
Moreover, the lighting of the airport has been restructured in such a manner that the entire lighting system will be embedded into the four-kilometer runway and taxi-way. The entire perimeter fence is being lighted as well.
A source who spoke on condition of anonymity assured that “the downgrade in status of Asaba Airport has not, in any way, affected the operation of scheduled commercial flights in and out of the airport”, saying Arik Air, Aero Contractors and Overland Air which operate scheduled flights, have continued to provide seamless services to passengers.
His words: “We hereby assure the public that the Delta State Government is committed to ensuring the upgrade of the facilities as directed by the NCAA promptly and the status of Asaba Airport will soon be restored to accommodate bigger jets such as the Boeing 737.”
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My airport bigger than yours
•Airports have become prized items of political bragging rights in Nigeria.
Previously, airports were built, equipped and operated by the Federal Government, from geopolitical and economic considerations.
The oldest, the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, and the Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano, lived up to their billing; as gateways to the outside world for the most part, though they could not boast and still cannot boast the sophisticated technology on which modern aviation depends.
They were complemented by airports in Kaduna, Ibadan and Enugu, capitals of the three regions that made up the Nigerian Federation.
Reconstruction, after the civil war, fuelled by oil revenues, witnessed a huge expansion in the air transportation network, with an airport in each of the 12 state capitals, configured from the former regions.
Creation of more states led to the demand for airports in the new states. Where the Federal Government was not forthcoming, the states took matters into their own hands.
The result is today’s proliferation of airports across the country. Only a few states do not have one facility or another designated as an airport. But no fewer than 17 such facilities have been declared redundant by the aviation industry. Yet, more airports are being constructed or planned.
Despite the grim economic outlook, Ekiti State has begun clearing a site for an airport. Such is the frenzy with which Governor Ayo Fayose is pursuing the project that he did not even consult those who hold customary titles to the land; nor offer compensation for the economic trees on their farmlands before he sent in bulldozers to clear the site in the state capital, Ado-Ekiti.
Even if Ekiti had abundant resources, it would still be hard to justify the project. Akure airport, in neighbouring Ondo State, located less than an hour by road from Ado Ekiti, has been little more than a white elephant since it was built some two decades ago.
The old regional airport in Ibadan, some two hours from Ado-Ekiti, is more a sentimental reminder of the glory days of former Western Nigeria than a functioning, thriving concern.
Despite its contiguity with Kano, of which it used to be a part, and easy access to the Aminu Kano International Airport, Jigawa spent an estimated N6 billion to build its own airport. Former Governor Sule Lamido was going to pass the cost on to the Federal Government, as a price for remaining in the fold after the defection of several PDP governors to the Opposition, and for supporting and Dr Jonathan Goodluck’s reelection bid.
It is not clear whether the deal was ultimately consummated. But there is no justification whatsoever for Lamido spending N6 billion on the airport, or for Dr Jonathan underwriting the cost. The airport is at best a monument to Lamido’s misplaced priorities.
Building an airport, as the Federal Government has found and state governments are discovering, is the easy part. Maintaining it is a different proposition. Even where an airport serves commercial routes, the revenues it generates rarely offset maintenance costs. The airports that lie idle most of the time are for all practical purposes financial sinkholes.
They also pose security challenges, poorly manned and policed as they are. Even at the so-called Port Harcourt International Airport, one of the better facilities, herds of cattle have on several occasions breached the runway, resulting in accidents or near-misses.
The more sensible thing is to raise the more viable and strategic of the existing airports to global standards, instead of dissipating scarce resources on vainglorious airfields that add no value to the economy or the well-being of the people.
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FAAN to build Abuja airport’s second runway
The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) said yesterday that it is stepping up efforts to build a second runway for the Abuja airport.
FAAN’s Managing Director Saleh Dunoma stated this at the weekend.
According to him, a second runway is very important because it is key to our operations.
Dunoma said due to increase in passenger and airline movement at the airport, the building of a second runway would prevent the deterioration of the existing one.
He envisioned that given the present rate of growth in the industry, the existing runway might not effectively sustain traffic.
He explained that a committee comprising officials of the authority and the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) has been set up to determine what the runway would look like, including facilities to be included in its design.
Dunoma added that a survey to determine the location of the second runway at the airport has been carried out so that the new facilities to be provided would work smoothly with the existing ones.
His words: “Well, the second runway is very important; it is key to our operations. The present runway has deteriorated so much such that we need to do a major work on it to make it better.
“So the second runway will be necessary. You cannot afford to close Abuja airport because it is the seat of government and it is important to our economy.”
“A committee was setup last year between FAAN and FCDA and we have come out with a scope of what we want in terms of the facilities that should be included in the second runway design.
“That scope have been developed, we have advertised also both in the nationally and internationally for consultant that will develop that scope into working drawings and bill of quantities so that we can both tender them. But we are yet to select the consultation because the process of procuring a consulting firm is what we are doing.
“Already, preliminary survey had been carried out in Abuja by our in-house engineers; we have a fair idea of the location of the second runway and the facilities that we need to provide there.”
He added: “Because we need to provide link taxiways, taxiways, aprons and some other things that will make both the new and the existing facility work together as an airport.
“These locations have been identified, it is part of the brief that we are going to give the consultant; that this is the area that we want the second runway to be located and these are the facilities we want to be included in this project and the consultant will go ahead to do a detailed survey, detailed design and a detailed bill of quantity will come out with which government can go to tender.”
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Fayose’s airport of the apocalypse
The idea of an airport has been a long-standing fascination for some Ekiti people. Hemmed in by unprofitable airports in Akure and Ibadan, former Ekiti governors had been undecided on whether an investment in that field would not be a white elephant. Given the lean resources of the state, its low IGR and 35th position in terms of federal revenue allocation, its small population, and lack of industries, the state’s leaders finally decided that it simply didn’t make sense to build an airport, notwithstanding the allure of the idea.
Suddenly, in a few months, and without appropriation, Governor Ayo Fayose has brusquely decided to build an airport he calculates will cost some N17bn. According to him, the airport should be ready in a year. The state’s groveling House of Assembly has been unable to offer the restraint and alternative views the state needs to take the best options, and stupefied state elders have lent the governor full support for entirely private reasons. The state may owe some N36bn, or N76bn as Mr Fayose put it, and there may be no feasibility and environmental impact assessment reports, nor any discussions or negotiations with landowners, not to talk of compensation, but who cares.
Soon after Mr Fayose had his brain wave, he simply committed bulldozers into the project and they began to clear the project land. As evidence of the embarrassing shoddiness of the project, aggrieved landowners, some of them cocoa and palm plantation farmers, have protested bitterly that they were neither consulted nor compensated. Mr Fayose has now suspended the project pending when he will secure an agreement with the farmers.
No doubt, something crazy is going on in Ekiti. As the state awaits Mr Fayose’s financial magic, as they endure the rule of an unprepared scatterbrain, and as they wait for apocalypse — for that nightmare will come — they must also begin to agonise how on earth they found themselves in this dangerous bind.
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Family demands compensation for ‘airport’ project land
The proposed airport project of the Ayo Fayose administration is causing more controversy as the family which owns the land claimed it was not notified before bulldozers moved to site last Friday.
The Iwajo Family of Aso Ayegunle, on Ijan Road in Ado Ekiti, the state capital, is demanding compensation on the economic trees on the land “in line with the law of the land”.
Its members said they were shocked to see bulldozers and other earth-moving equipment on the land without any notice and without their consent.
They claimed the project besides destroying the cocoa plantations would also render not less than 5,000 workers jobless.
The family said throwing over 5,000 cocoa plantation owners and workers out of job would defeat the “stomach infrastructure” policy of the Fayose administration.
Rising from a meeting at the weekend presided over by the head of the family, Chief Moses Ojo, and attended by over 1,000 people, the family resolved to hold a follow-up meeting with the Ewi of Ado Ekiti, Oba Adeyemo Adejugbe today at his palace.
It claimed to have been on the land for over 500 years, saying the land was not suitable because it is a cocoa belt, which spreads to Igbemo-Ekiti in Irepodun/Ifelodun Local Government Area and never a virgin land.
Members said they don’t want to be added to the ever-increasing number of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), expressing fear that the airport project could trigger a refugee crisis in the area, if they are chased out of their ancestral land.
They recalled that when government acquired the land on which the Ondo State House of Assembly complex was built, land owners were given prior notice and compensated, although there was no cocoa plantation there and that such a ‘benevolent’ action was taken by a military regime.
The resolution signed by Ojo, the secretary, Osho Olorunfemi and Chief Italohun Fadahunsi, called on the government to consider another virgin land on Ado-Ijan Road, if the family and owners of the cocoa plantations won’t be compensated.
They said: “The Land Use Decree gives a person using a place for about a century title to the land. Before taking the land from the person using it, royalty should be paid to the owner apart from the property on the land.
“Ekiti is known to be a cocoa-producing state and this site is renowned for cocoa production. To the best of our knowledge, any land being acquired by government, it is expected that government should settle the owner on the land and property therein before moving to site.
“To the best of our knowledge, all the farm owners at the present (Federal) Polytechnic were settled before moving to site. We are afraid that stomach infrastructure will be defeated if about 5,000 people are driven away by force.
“As far as we are friends of this government, government in turn should put our interest into consideration before any project that is secondary to our well-being is executed.
“If eventually the government sticks to its decision to site the project on this spot, there should be compensation and adequate notice given to allow those who have repayable crops to harvest their crops before moving to the site.”
But Commissioner for Works Kayode Osho allayed the fear of the family and the people of Aso Ayegunle community.
Osho, the chairman of the airport project implementation committee, assured the people that adequate compensation would be paid to owners of the land and economic trees.
The commissioner, however, was non-committal on when the compensation will be paid.