Kano stakeholders have raised alarm over what they described as the appalling state of the Malam Aminu Kano International Airport, alleging that the facilities installed in the remodeled Nigeria second largest Airport are “substandard” and totally unacceptable to the business community.
The position of the Kano businessmen on the status of the Kano airport was made known at a press conference addressed by leaders of the Kano business community to express their dissatisfaction with the facilities at the airport remodeled and commissioned by the minister of Aviation princess Stella Oduah recently.
The group attributed the low human, cargo and general lull in aviation activities to what they termed neglect of MAKIA by the relevant authorities even as they disputed claims linking the decline of aviation activities to insecurity especially the insurgency promoted by the Boko Haram Militancy.
Spokesman for the stakeholders and president Kano chamber of Commerce Industry, Mimes and Agriculture, Umar Rabiu Dansuleka said it is regrettable that the Kano airport which was establish in 2005 and the first airport in the country which had been used to promote commercial activities, particularly in the North, is now a shadow of its old self.
He pointed out that most international airlines which hitherto used the airport such as “KLM, British Airways, Alitalia, Sabena, Swiss Air, Among other chartered airlines have now abandoned the airport, this development he said has created untold hardship to the Northern business community, pointing out that effort by the stakeholders to find ways of addressing the situation review that a number of man made factors were responsible for the decline of aviation operations at the Kano airport.
“A coalition of business associations together with the Honorable commissioner for commerce, industry, Cooperative, tourism, visited the airport for undisclosed assessment of the recent remodeling of the airport that was recently commissioned by the Federal Ministry of Aviation even though not completed, that visit reviewed the deterioration of facilities at MAKIA.
The stakeholders said for instance the 05 run-way has no night landing facilities and in the event that the 06 run-way develop problem, the airport has alternative landing facilities at night while the safe tower project which was constructed in 2006, equipment purchased since 2008 have been lying idle and rusting away.
“Uncompleted passenger lodge is without facilities like conveyor belts, electric check in counters, furniture for passengers convenience, central air-condition system, while passengers will have to wait between two to three hours for them to disembark with their accompanied luggage as provision made is manual”.
The group further claimed that x-ray screening machines are conspicuously not in place same as the screening cubicles for security agents like Immigration, NDLEA, and others are not available at the departure and arrival halls. “The conveyer belts installed at the arrival hall are not the originally recommended belt the contract agreement, just as the toilet facilities are substandard with leaking pipes.
Concluding the Kano businessmen said it is appropriate to declare therefore that “the facilities at the Airport were abandoned with reckless impunity by the Federal Ministry of Aviation for many years and the so called remodeling project was glaringly substandard compared with other sister Airport; Lagos, Abuja, and Port Harcourt that were renovated alongside with the MAKIA.
We also suspect a grand design to frustrate the completion of the remodeling of MAKIA as no serious commissioning work has been felt since three months ago.
