The Minister for Aviation, Mr. Osita Chidoka, has stated that the safety of the Nigerian airspace, security of the airports, review of projects, and the sustenance of the aviation sector master plan remained the top priority of his regime, which ends May next year.
Chidoka was briefing the media in Lagos yesterday for the first time since he assumed office and after a two-day working visit to the Lagos airport and allied infrastructure.
He said he would, however, appreciate ideas, suggestions and solutions from experts and stakeholders on how he could move the industry forward.
“Our immediate strategy is to engage stakeholders in the industry, review existing projects and prioritise activities to ensure safety in the air, security of our airports infrastructure and to ensure good customer experience at the airport,” said Chidoka.
“A lot of progress has been made in the industry and my engagements with industry stakeholders have led to the confirmation that the aviation master plan is desirable and must be sustained.
“Since assumption of office, I decided that we will create alignment across all segments of the industry, sample opinions and come out with an implementation strategy on how best we can achieve the master plan, complete the airports remodeling, building the cargo terminals, tap private sector contribution and drive the industry forward,” he added.
The minister said there was need for him to do a review of all he has heard from stakeholders so far and align them with the master plan, and work out an implementation schedule.
“But before we do this, I am going to brief Mr. President on the journey so far and the issues before the industry on what needs to be done,” he added.
Speaking on the Ebola virus scourge, the minister said, “part of the visit to Lagos State was to review the medical procedure that has been put in place at the airports and to reassure Nigerians that we will do everything within our abilities to keep our airports safe. You can agree with me that the testing so far has been useful. We are committed to keeping our country Ebola-free,” he added.
