By Andrew Oota
Senate chief whip ,senator Ali Ndume has assured that the insecurity in Borno step occasioned by the activities of Boko Haram has not only reduced but also non comparable to the activities of IPOB and banditry .
Senator Ndume’s assurance was to advance his argument that insecurity experienced in Borno state is not enough to affect his motion on the upgrade of the Muhammadu Buhari international airport ,Maiduguri internationally operational .
Senator Ndume had earlier moved a motion for the upgrade of the Muhammadu Buhari international airport Maidiguri on the floor of the Senate .
According to him , the North East geopolitical zone is the only zone without an international airport ,hence the need for the upgrade .
He maintained that operational flights from the middle east into Nigeria will not only fly over the Maiduguri but importantly stop over ,which according to him will impact positively on the economy of the state as well ease movement of intending travellers .
“All the six geo-political zones of the country except the North East has internationally airport , Borno is bordering three countries namely Chad ,Cameroon and Niger and deserves an upgrade ”
Responding to questions from Senate correspondents on the insecurity in the North East and Borno in particular , the lawmakers said, “the Boko Haram is no longer an issue and nobody should create any impression that Borno is not safe”
He stressed that there are daily flights into Maiduguri and it will be unfair for anybody to tag the state a security zone.
“The Boko Haram is lesser than banditry , lesser than IPOB and I want to tell you that Maidiguri is safer than Abuja.
“Upgrading the airport will also attract foreign investment,enhance economic development ,improve the quality of life of the people of the zone and ultimately increase the gross domestic product of Nigeria ”
Consequently the Senate urged the minister responsible for Aviation to immediately begin the process of upgrading the Muhammadu Buhari International airport operationally international standard .
It also mandated the Senate committee on Aviation to follow up and report to the Senate within eight weeks .
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