Four years ago, the Federal government conceived and proposed the idea of concessioning as the only way out of the gross inefficiencies and rot in the nations airports scattered all over the country. The aviation workers and other stakeholders who have initially given their nod to this idea have now turned their back on this proposals citing some red flags. The federal government through the Aviation Minister Senator Hadi Sirika, has maintained consistently that the government no longer has the funds to invest in aviation infrastructure scattered through out the country.
The current stalemate is either fueled by lack of transparency in the overall concession programmes or self-centredness in the part of the aviation workers. The merit and demerits of the concessioning programmes in the aviation when weighted against the rot in the aviation sector of the country, if truth be told is now tilting in favour of the government.
The arguements of the government at this time, in reality, is the most logical. Airports in our country both local and international are in a deplorable state that earned them the reputation of being the worst aerodromes anywhere in the world. Fixing them would take a lot of money that the federal government with its competing economic needs from other sectors of the economy could no longer afford. It is time to turn them over to the private sector to run them efficiently and profitably.The basic aviation audience now could not agree less with governments position, as the longer we delay we are just postponing the day of reality dawning on us.
Now in 2021, with the airports still in the tight and unprofitable hands of the federal government and the aviation unions still at arms with the government over the remooting of the idea of concessioning as the only way to go. Many observers are now at awe with the activities of the unions who once praised concessioning as an idea whose time has come.
NIGERIAN AIRPORTS ASSETS OR LIABILITY.
Presently the federal government operates and has 22 airports scattered all over the country, a record in Africa, but not me to envy, out of the 22 aiports,19 out of this numbers are unviable as they operates at a total loss. Save for the Murtala Mohammed international airports in Lagos, Nnamdi Azikiwe international airport Abuja, and the Portharcourt international airports which are classified as viable, Mallam Aminu Kano international airport Kano, the others are liabilities to the government. Investigations have shown that the i traffic Lagos airports and the Abuja internatimal airports excess revenues which has amounted to N26.1Billion has consistently been used to augment and cover the running costs of this 19 unviable airports and that is enough reason to convince any public minded analyst to support the call for concessioning.
Recently, the aviation Minister, who has consistently reiterated and maintained his stand on concessioning as the only way out still maintained his stance that the Federal government has no money to invest on aviation infrastructures and this is honest truth because of the economic realities we are presently experiencing in the country.
What is at stake is not the total concessionings of the airports as only the terminals would be involved.
I think we should all convincingly rise and support the stance of the Federal government as it is an idea which is exceptionally and systematically a departure from the stance of the past administration which considered a total concessioning. Paucity of funds have led the federal government to take this decision which cannot be said to be rash as the government is always in dialogue with the aviation workers and all the other critical stakeholders in the Nigerian aviation industry.
We must understand that the Buhari administration has done a lot for the aviation sector and we must trust that this bitter pills to take solution became neccessary because of dwindling revenue that has made it impossible for it to provide for aviation infrastructures. For example the Murtala Mohammed airports built in 1979 was made for to process 200,000 passengers but today processing for about 8Million passengers yearly.This clearly shows and stipulates that the airport is overstretched and needs more infrastructures and this made the government recourse to the private section through the PPP mechanisms.
What the Buhari administration is trying to do is to keep the assets of the people for the people unlike the previous administration that tried to sell off the assets of the people. What the government is doing is for service delivery and it will revert surely to the people.
HOW NOT TO CONCESSION.
Government has since 2017 begun moves to concession the nations airports beginning with the big four, Lagos, Abuja,Portharcourt,and Kano.Coincidentally.they are beneficiaries of the 2013 loan deal between China and Nigeria for the building of four terminals in Nigeria. Abuja and Portharcourt now use their new terminals, Lagos and Kano are work in progress.
Recently, following the concession approval by the infrastructural concession regulatory agency ICRA, the workers in the aviation industry through their unions became more agitate asking for the details of the 500MD concession loan previously taken for the terminals buildings and the planned add ons.There is need for openness and trust and government must urgently avail the unions of this details.
It is also important that the government must come clean on the issue of primacy of Nationals security.It should urgently place it within the confine of national security architecture especially at this security threatening times in our country.The four airports are basically a gateway to the country and the people are right to demand details especially as the concessioned airports may be in foreign hands.
Musa Wada, Abuja
