suspension of three top officials of Nnamdi Azikiwe International
Airport, Abuja, over the recent incident involving Turkish Airlines at
the airport.
Mr. Sirika disclosed this on Sunday in Abuja while briefing journalists
after listening to explanations by the airport officials on the incident.
He added that the ministry had also ordered thorough investigation to
ascertain the cause of the breach, as well as why the airline brought
in passengers without their luggage.
The suspended officials, according to him, are the Airport Manager,
Terminal Manager and Head of Airport Security, who were ordered to
hand over to their next in rank pending the conclusion of the
investigation.
The minister said the explanation by the officials of the airport that
the security personnel on duty were overpowered was not acceptable,
ordering for thorough investigation into the incident.
He stated that the actions of the passengers, forcing their ways into
the tarmac and blocking the aircraft from taking off was a security
breach which must not be condoned.
“There has been an unfortunate incident where some agitated
passengers of the Turkish Airlines arrived without their luggage
making them to force their way into the tarmac which is a breach of
security.
“The explanation given is not satisfactory because the primary
purpose of the government is to ensure safety of lives and property of
its citizens.
“The cardinal objective of this administration is to secure the country
and manage it and we cannot fail in aviation and we cannot fail in this
important assignment at a very important point.
“We have ordered for the investigation into the matter immediately
and all the people that are manning the various places; Airport
Manager, Terminal Manager and Head of Security, should handover to
the next man in rank pending the outcome of the investigation.
“As to the airline also, the Consumer Protection Unit of the Nigeria
Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has been ordered to find out what
happened, how compliant they are and deal with it accordingly,” he
said.
Mr. Sirika said the ministry was yet to get the flight manifest to be
able to ascertain the number of passengers involved.
According to him, the passengers got agitated and got access into the
prohibited area because there was security lapse.
The minister stated that the nation’s aviation sector had the capacity
to grow, adding that it was already showing signal that it could
tremendously contribute to the country’s Gross Domestic Product
(GDP).
According to him, aviation is carrying by value, 31 per cent of the
world cargo which makes it a very important industry as the fastest
means of transportation.
“With specific to Nigeria, you could see how we grew from Kano
Airport where the first plane landed in the country to about 22
Federal Government owned airports plus several other private owned
airports.
“On the whole, aviation I can say has grown to an appreciable level in
the country and it has the capacity to grow more which is important
to the economy of the country,” he said.
Mr. Sirika added that the country also had good manpower such as
pilots and engineers to move the industry forward.
He disclosed that the government was determined to deliver a more
vibrant and efficient aviation sector in 2016 by making safety, security
and efficiency its watch word with regards to transportation.
“It is not about the beauty of the airports or planting flowers or other
vanities, it is about safety, security and efficiency as far as aviation is
concerned,’’ he said.
Earlier, Bashir Hausawa, Acting Head of Security, explained to the
minister that the security personnel were overpowered by the angry
passengers over the non-arrival of their luggage.
Mr. Hausawa added that the shortage of manpower was responsible
for the incident, adding that there was only one man manning luggage
area of the airport during the incident.
He said they were 192 security men manning the whole of the airport
resulting in the shortage of manpower distribution to various units.
(NAN)
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