Following reports in a section of the media that Ministry of Aviation has given a marching order to operatives of the State Security Service (SSS) to stay away from all the nation’s international airports, the Minister of Aviation, Stella Oduah has debunked the report, describing it as untrue and a blatant lie.
Speaking with newsmen shortly after inspecting ongoing renovation of the Jos Cargo Airport project in Plateau State, the Minister said there was no iota of truth in the report, adding that the nation’s airports’ needed operatives of the SSS more than before and could not have sent them packing.
“That is not true, that is absolutely untrue, there is no reason for that to happen, we need the State Security Service to be at our terminals and they are there and will remain there.
“I don’t know where the reports emanated from, but I think it is unbelievable for anyone to think that someone should give marching orders to security men at any airport in Nigeria or any part of the world for that matter”, she said.
The minister, who expressed satisfaction with the quality of work on the job and urged the contractors to maintain the standard, however, lamented that the contract, which was awarded to Waland Services Ltd., had “dragged for too long’’.
“The project is in line with the design of the airport, but we are not happy with the pace of the work”, she stated.
She noted that much of the work on the project, aside from the ceiling, painting and fittings, had been completed, saying “there is no need for further delays in completing it’’.
On inherent benefits of the cargo terminal at the airport when fully operational, Ms. Oduah said, “The value chain that will emanate from the terminal is immeasurable. You are going to have new world-class commodities coming out of different rural areas.
“We are also going to have connectivity that is commercial-based and you are going to have a bottom-up growth in the economy of the state”, the minister stressed.
