The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Murtala Muhammed Airport

  • Aviation workers protest N25b debt owed by airlines

    Aviation workers protest N25b debt owed by airlines

    Over 200 airport workers and aviation union members yesterday staged a protest at the domestic wing of the Murtala Muhammed Airport , Ikeja , Lagos to protest over the N25 billion the airlines are owing the Federal Government.

    Led by the Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (ATSSSAN), the unions threatened to stop rendering services to major airlines if they failed to settle they are owing the Federal Government within the next seven days.

    ATSSSAN and the National Union of Air Transport Employees (NUATE) blocked ticket counters at the domestic wing of the airport to express their disapproval over the debts owed agencies.

    For over three hours during the protest, activities around the airport environment were  disrupted.

    Addressing the gathering, the ATSSSAN President, Mr Benjamin Okewu, said the protest was a result of the refusal of the airlines to settle their debts to the government.

    He said: “This protest is to send a notice to airline management that aviation workers are tired of the incessant indebtednessto all the aviation parastatals.

    “Airlines have been enjoying services from aviation parastatal without paying for the services rendered to it.

    “We are here to inform the passenger, the airline’s management and every other stakeholders that very soon, aviation workers will be ceasing all the services rendered to such airlines  they decide not to pay their  debt.

    “We cannot continue like this as the change we clamour for and the anti-corruption crusade of President Muhammadu Buhari must reflect in the aviation industry.”

  • ‘Govt urged to privatise airport’

    ‘Govt urged to privatise airport’

    Operator of the Murtala Muhammed Airport Terminal Two (MMA2) Bi- Courtney Aviation Services Limited has urged the Federal Government to privatise airports to make them more customer friendly and effective .

    The firm said if government could not embrace full privatisation, it could opt for concession model, which has the capacity to attract private sector investment .

    Its the head of corporate communications  Mr Remi Ladigbolu in an interview, said across the world privatisation and concession of airports are far becoming the best options.

    “It is only when government insists on managing its airports that challenges of under performing airports would come to the front burner,” he said.

    He said it was time government did a quick turn around to save Nigerian airports from being categorised as among the worst airports in the world.

    Ladigbolu said :”’ “Across the world, airports are being privatised outright, or given out as concessions to private operators. If Britain can concession Gatwick Airport terminal to a Nigerian, Adebayo Ogunlesi, what more do we have to say? What the industry needs desperately is a thorough liberalization and overhaul of the regulatory agencies to make them more efficient and more professional so as to be able to stamp out corruption.

    “The reforms at the seaports, though incomplete, provide a precedent, just as the success of the telecommunications sector liberalisation programme has delivered 110 million telephone lines, created hundreds of thousands of jobs and drawn in millions of dollars in foreign direct investment in 12 years.

    This demonstrates the enormous power that can be unleashed by leaving critical sectors to private capital.”

    In a related development an aviation expert has attributed the  high cost of airport infrastructure in Nigeria as one of the factors affecting the potential growth of the travel industry .

    Apart from the prohibitive cost of infrastructure , the expert who pleaded not to named said the required infrastructure to accelerate the growth of aviation are inadequate .

    He said Nigeria, as the largest economy in Africa requires massive infrastructure at affordable rate to drive air transportation, which is the key to sustainable and accelerated development.

    Speaking in an interview in Lagos, he said  said government needs to drive the growth of the industry by putting in place a policy framework that would attract private sector players to invest in airport infrastructure.

    He said: “If we are committed to the growth and development of the aviation industry government should address the challenge of air transport infrastructure.

    It is infrastructure that drives the growth of air transport and other support industries . But, in Nigeria,  unfortunately infrastructure is below standard.

    Infrastructure in Nigeria is low and also expensive.

    Until these issues are addressed it may be difficult to unlock the potentials that air transport offers .

    Government should put in place the right policies to motivate private sector players to develop infrastructure required for air travel.

    One way of doing this is for government to drive development through private sector inclusion . This indeed will not only drive development but , also generate thousands of jobs .”

    He said government should put in place development models that would accelerate development as is the practice other parts of the world.

    He said in the 1990’s Nigeria and the Republic of South Korea were at par In terms of infrastructure .

    Overtime, South Korea has shown enough capacity to develop aviation infrastructure that it is now one of the best in the world.

    He said :” It is frustrating to see in Nigeria that the potentials of the aviation industry as a driver for national development is not properly utilised.

    We need the private sector to push for change .”

     

     

  • Agents blame FAAN for ‘poor ’ terminal security

    The National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAF), Murtala Muhammed Airport’s chapter, has blamed the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) over the porous security at the airport cargo section. FAAN, it claimed, is unable to restrict access into the facility.

    The Chairman of the  Lagos airport chapter of the association,  Segun Musa, said the failure of  the airport authority to control movement of persons into and out of the terminal led to regular infraction of airport security.

    He spoke against the background of the clash between licensed Customs Agents and officials of Nigerian Customs Service, which led to the closure of the cargo-shed.

    The NAGAF chairman accused   FAAN of not doing enough to ensure adequate access control measures at the cargo terminal’s entrance.

    He said inadequate control over access is responsible for the porous arrangement around the terminal, which has made cargo clearing an all comers  affairs.

    Musa said: “We hereby call on FAAN to put in place adequate access control measures at the gate into the cargo terminal to correct the observed abnormalities.

    ‘’The security committee of the airport is not doing enough. If it were doing enough, there should be a data bank that will provide biometric identification for operators to access parts of the airport  that are not restricted.

    “The airport needs a data bank to identify people who could access the shed .”

  • Air mishap: Lagos Emergency Agency confirms 11 dead

    Air mishap: Lagos Emergency Agency confirms 11 dead

    … Four injured

    The Lagos State Emergency Management Authority  said on Thursday that 11  people died and four others injured in the early morning air crash at the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Ikeja.

    The plane crashed shortly after take-off at about 9.30 am local time. It had 20 passengers and seven crew members on board.

    Meanwhile, the Minister of Aviation, Stella Oduah, has confirmed the crash of an Embraer aircraft operated by Associated Airlines with Reg No SCD 361 at the Lagos airport.

    The minister said in a statement that emergency rescue operations commenced immediately by a combined team of Fire Service and security personnel .

    “Some persons pulled out from the aircraft have been rushed to the hospital while a few dead bodies have been recovered. The rescue operations is still on-going, ” she said.

  • Lawmaker trains pupils on leadership

    One hundred and thirty-two pupils across 22 primary schools in Kosofe 11 Constituency of Lagos State have received leadership training, including a tour of some important places in the state.

    The tagged: ‘J.A. Youth Leadership, Empowerment Achievement Programme’ was sponsored by the Majority Leader of the state House of Assembly, Ajibayo Adeyeye.

    Of the lot, only three best pupils from primary five and six were selected for the programme.

    The pupils toured the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos Television (LTV), and the Lagos State House of Assembly all in Ikeja. The children were also lectured on leadership.

    Giving his reason for the training, Adedyeye said: “We took them (children) to the airport and they all saw how the air transportation works in Nig. They even had the opportunity of entering the aircraft. We took them to LTV where they were able to see the studio, control room and other units. There they proceeded to the Lagos State House of Assembly where we gave them talks on leadership training and how government has been working.”

    Kosofe said he initiated the programme to bridge the gap in civic education.

    “We discovered that there is a civic education gap in Nigeria, to the extent that even our elites do not actually know the workings of government. So, I feel a sense of responsibility that there is need to bridge this gap of civic education. I have decided to start with the very young and, hopefully, I will graduate this to even the community development associations (CDAs), the resident associations, the adolescent and other groups of people in a short while,” Adeyeye added.

    At the end of the exercise, the participants were given gifts and awards which included books, math set, dictionaries, among others.

    “When they resume by September, we expect a representative of each school to stand in front of the school assembly and read a report of the outing to the other pupils. Hopefully that will ginger the other students to do well in their academics so that they can be part of this programme next year,” Adeyeye said.

     

  • FAAN, Bi-Courteny disagree over revocation of lease agreements

    The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) on Tuesday announced the termination of two leases granted Bi-Courtney Limited at the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Ikeja for the development and management of a four-star hotel and conference centre.

    The yet to be completed four – star hotel and conference centre is opposite the MMA 2, terminal , Ikeja, Lagos.

    Bi- Courtney in a reaction dismissed the termination of the lease Bi- Courtney insisting that there is a court injunction restraining FAAN from carrying out such actions.

    According to the general manager, corporate communications of FAAN, Mr Yakubu Dati, the authority had In two separate letters, dated April 19th 2012, informed Bi-Courtney that the leases granted it in respect of the two projects had been terminated as a result of breaches committed by the company in the agreements it signed with FAAN on the two projects.

    Dati explained that by the said agreements, the two projects were to be completed in 2008 but FAAN graciously extended the construction period to July, 2009 but Bi-Courtney failed to complete the two projects at the expiration of the extended period.

    He said :” By that termination order, the demised premises, in respect of the two projects, have reverted to FAAN automatically, in line with the terms of the agreements.”

    However,  in a statement, the public relations officer of Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Limited, Mr Steve Omolale- Ajulo said :” For FAAN to say it has terminated the projects and taken possession of the land is laughable and a clear disobedience of subsisting court orders.”

    “Nigerians should please ignore them, as they are not saying anything new. Like they themselves admitted in their latest statement, they first issued the statement purportedly terminating the two projects on April 19, 2012.

    “As it is usual with them, they have re-issued the same statement in order to confuse aviation stakeholders and continue to create crises in the sector.

    “Every aviation stakeholder knows that it was the same old statement, issued last year that they have rewritten and presented to the media as a new one to deceive the public.

    “FAAN knows that it cannot terminate the projects because of the court injunction. There are consequences for such an action.”

    Ajulo, further  said: “Justice S.J. Adah of the Federal High Court, Ikeja Division, had, on April 23, 2012, issued an order restraining the Attorney-General of the Federation, Inspector-General of Police, Managing Director of FAAN and FAAN itself (all defendants in the suit we filed against them) from commencing, continuing and/or completing any actions or permitting the commencement, continuance and/or completion of any action.

    “This in respect of taking over possession of and/or interfering with Applicant’s possession of the Four-Star Hotel and the Conference Centre situate at the Murtala Muhammed Airport Terminal Two, Ikeja, under construction pursuant to its letters reference: FAAN/1600/0210213 and FAAN/1600/0210214, both dated April 19th, 2012, or any other letter, instrument or instruction whatsoever pending the hearing and determination of the Applicant’s application for interlocutory injunction.

    “The court order, originating motion, affidavit in support, exhibits and the Notice of Arbitration were all served on FAAN and its Managing Director, and received and signed for, on their behalf, by one Mrs. C. Akinola at 11.55a.m on April 24th, 2012,” Ajulo stated

  • Inspection of refurbished Fire Tenders

    Inspection of refurbished Fire Tenders

    Inspection of refurbished Fire Tenders  at the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Ikeja, Lagos, yesterday