Posted by By UCHE USIM on
Like a thunderbolt, a bulldozer of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) descended on illegal occupants at the Murtala Muhammed Airport Ikeja recently.
It was not as if they were taken unawares. The illegal occupants had been severally informed via meetings, publications and detailed quit notices. While some simply obeyed and moved to an appropriate location, others chose to be adamant to see the outcome of the "empty threats."
The three-day exercise was carried out by the parastatal corporation in conjunction with the presidential task force on demolition of illegal structures at airports. It was carried out in five phases, starting from the General Aviation Terminal (GAT), old domestic terminal, Hajj and Cargo terminal and the International terminal.
The Managing Director of FAAN, Engr Mohammed Gambo Umar, said the demolition was more than necessary, considering the fact that those hoodlums and other criminals who operate under the name "Abuja boys' use the illegal structures as their hideouts and residential places after committing their atrocities. He also expressed his unwavering resolve to deal with any group in the airport, which operates contrary to stipulations of authority.
"Such structures also constitute security risk at the airport. It's an eyesore to air travellers and other airport users. It does not equally speak well of our country when tourists and other investors come into the country. You know that the airport is the eye through which foreigners view the country and the need to give our country a good image cannot be over-emphasized," he said.
Engr Umar, who witnessed the demolition exercise, stressed that formal quit notices were served the affected occupants, apart from published notices in different newspapers, before the eventual destruction.
"Since we didn't want the demolition to be seen as a vindictive, rather than corrective action, series of meetings were held with the affected occupants, irrespective of their illegality in constructing the structures. We did not also want them to feel they were taken unawares, so we really intimated them on our plans. This explains why the exercise was carried out without resistance from the occupants and most of them have already dismantled the structures on their own before FAAN bulldozers commenced the demolition," Gambo explained.
The exercise was supervised by members of the presidential task force, including the Deputy Commissioner of Police, Airport Command, Mr Fabian Ojiri; Military Commandant of the Airport, Group Capt M. Tizhe Tizhe and the Airport NDLEA zonal commandant, Alhaji Abdullahi Damburam.
While expressing satisfaction with the demolition exercise, the FAAN boss said the authority would beam its searchlight on the entire premises of FAAN to ensure that such structures are never erected.
He noted his administration's determination to reposition Nigeria on the world's economic and tourism map to ensure that foreigners are encouraged to come into the country to invest.