FG abandons N90bn airport remodelling project

Indicationemerged on Sunday that the Federal Government had abandoned the much touted N90bn airport remodelling project, which started last year.The immediate past Minister of Aviation, Mrs. Fidelia Njeze, said on September 21, 2010, that the Federal Government had given approval for the remodelling of six of the nations airports to international standards with about N90bn.The money, she said, would be used in massive construction of additional runways to accommodate heavy aircraft, upgrade the terminals and other facilities at the airports.She named the airports as Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos; Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja; Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano; Port Harcourt airport; Akanu Abiam Airport, Enugu; and Margaret Ekpo International Airport, Calabar.She said the funding of the projects would largely come from the 2010 budget and through extra-budgetary means to ensure their quick execution.Part of the money was also expected to come from the private sector.She added that President Goodluck Jonathan had approved the designs of the airports.However, findings by our correspondent on Friday revealed that the new Minister of Aviation, Mrs. Stella Oduah-Ogiemwonyi, had dumped the idea.Sources in the aviation ministry said Oduah-Ogiemwonyi had jettisoned the N90bn airport remodelling concept, which her predecessor heavily campaigned for.The sources said the minister had started a new airport remodelling project, which would cost N19bn.The Special Assistant to the minister on Media, Mr. Joseph Obi, confirmed that the government had begun a new airport remodelling project.According to Obi, about 11 airports have been slated for remodelling with the amount.Obi, who confirmed that there was a policy document stating how some airports would be remodelled with N90bn, said government did not have such fund at the moment.He said the project might be revisited if government had funds.The new Managing Director, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, Mr. George Uriesi, told journalists that government had changed its strategy, noting that it was now focusing on fixing the dilapidated airports infrastructure across 11 airports with N19bn
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