The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, has described the Terminal 2 of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, as a testament to the Buhari Administration’s unprecedented infrastructure development across the country.
The Minister stated this in Lagos on Monday, during a media tour of the Terminal.
“This edifice – and the others like it – is a testament to the commitment of the Buhari Administration to the unprecedented infrastructure development covering roads, bridges, rail, water dams, sea ports, etc.
“No Administration in the history of Nigeria has done this much, especially at a time of paucity of resources,” he said.
Alhaji Mohammed said the tour of the new terminal was an exciting experience, adding that the facilities at the airport are comparable to what obtain anywhere in the world.
“The terminal, which has state-of-the art
facilities and fittings, has the capacity to
process 14 million passengers per annum.
“It has 60 check-in counters, 5 baggage claim belts, 16 departure desks and 28 arrival desks,” he said, after he was taken on a guided tour of the Terminal.
The Minister also said the terminal has 8 security screening points and 7 Passenger boarding bridges.
“There is a whole new experience in terms of aesthetics, comfort, free trolley services,
hotel and premium lounges, friendly customer services and free wifi,” he stated.
Alhaji Mohammed clarified that the Terminal 2 of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, was not built to replace Terminal 1 but to complement it.
“That’s why we were told that you could check in at one terminal and board at the other. So there is a handshake between the two terminals.
“It was the first terminal added to the original terminal since it was built some 40 years ago,” he said.
The Minister, who was accompanied by the Managing Director of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, Captain Rabiu Yadudu, and the Director General of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, Captain Musa Nuhu, was conducted around the check-in area; passport control; screening machines; 22-room hotel; boarding gates; boarding areas; praying area for Muslims and Christians; port health screening; baggage claim area and arrival concourse by the Terminal Manager, Mrs. Ojali Ausa.
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Ebonyi APC chieftain lauds FG’s proposed fuel subsidy removal
A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ebonyi, Dr Paul Okorie, has described as commendable, the proposed plan by the Federal Government to remove petrol subsidy.
Okorie, who is a former Commissioner for Works, Housing and Transportation, said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abakaliki on Monday.
He further described the plan as a “welcome development”.
He said: “For me, it is a good development.
“Good development in the sense that there has been so much controversy surrounding the quantity of petrol being consumed and amount being paid.
“But all these can be put to rest once subsidy is jettisoned.”
Okorie said that the “vibrant economic policy” would help steer the economy back to greatness.
He argued that the trillions of naira spent by the government to pay subsidy would be injected into the economy.
He, however, advised the Federal Government to put adequate measures in place to cushion the adverse effects of the subsidy removal on the ordinary Nigerians.
“Petrol is the commonest of all the petroleum products and people depend on it for both industrial and domestic purposes.
“You need fuel for transportation, to power the generator for both domestic and industrial use.
“The effect of subsidy withdrawal will be felt so badly by the people, if adequate measures were not put in place before it is finally removed,” he said.
He further advised the Federal Government to ensure that the savings from the subsidy removal should be invested in critical sectors of the economy, such as infrastructure, health and education.
Okorie, who is also a former Commissioner for Environment, urged the Federal Government to ensure that the refineries in Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna were made to operate optimally.
He also urged the government to grant licences to the operators of modular refineries to end fuel importation.
Okorie attributed the high cost of petrol in the country to the dependence on the importation of refined petroleum products.
According to him, the problem will be addressed once the nation’s refineries begin to function.
“The dollar continues to appreciate against our naira because we are depending so largely on importation of the products that we consume,” he added
