Aviation Minister, Senator Hadi Sirika, today 7 November 2019, formally handed over the Enugu Airport rehabilitation project to the contractors.

He later met with Gov. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi at Govt House Enugu and pledged once again to reopen the Enugu Airport to air traffic before Easter 2020.

Sirika told the Governor that the contractor, PW, has already mobilized to the site to begin the reconstruction and rehabilitation of degraded infrastructure, including the runway, for which the airport was shut down on 24 August 2019.

At the end of the meeting, the Minister told journalists that he is happy that the State Governor made tough decisions to remove all obstacles standing in the way of the project.

The Governor, he said, “has done everything we have asked the state government to do. We commend him also for those tough decisions that he took in overriding public interest. I think he is bold enough, courageous enough and his show of support and love for his people cannot be quantified.

“I want to assure Nigerians that this procurement, the reconstruction and rehabilitation of Enugu airport runway and the existing buildings and other associated works will be delivered efficiently in good time, transparently and prudently.”

Sirika also said that President Muhammadu Buhari will continue to fund the new Enugu International Terminal project which is being executed by a Chinese company, CCECC.

The Minister came to the meeting with the Managing Director of Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Capt. Hamisu Rabiu Yadudu and was joined by the Chairman, House Committee on Aviation, Hon. Nnoli Nnaji, who is also from Enugu.

He thanked Hon. Nnaji for working hard to deliver on the budgetary allocation for the project.

The minister maintained that the Federal Government sees Enugu as pivotal to the South East.

“We take it seriously and we must ensure that Enugu continues to play that central role it is playing.”

Hands over to contractors…

Earlier in the day, the Minister officially flagged off the rehabilitation when he handed over to the contractors, PW Contracting.

Sen. Sirika & his team at Enugu airport

He pressed the contractor to work in accordance with the schedule to meet the time set for completion.

He disclosed the range of actions taken by the Enugu state government to include providing the source of water for the contractors, relocating the Orie Emene Market, as well as clearing the illegal structures that posed dangers to the airport.

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One reply on “Minister flags off Enugu airport rehabilitation”

  1. Let Enugu state government hire an experienced expert, preferably a foreign expert to supervise the work, to avoid shabby/substand work. Or let the contractor use cement to build the whole tarmac. Also let them build a second tarmac. It’s painful but let suffer once and for all.

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