Investment and property worth over N5 billion was at the weekend destroyed as the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) demolished the regional headquarters of the Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB) at the international wing of the Murtala Muhammed Airport (MMIA), Lagos.
AbelNews learnt that the directive to issue two weeks’ relocation notices and commencement of demolition of offices in the area emanated from the Aviation Ministry that is headed by the its Minister, Senator, Hadi Sirika.
The buildings in the regional office which until mid-2020 was the headquarters of AIB-N, was marked for demolition to give way to the expansion of the new Chinese terminal that had been under construction since 2013.
The demolition came four days to the commissioning of the new terminal that is expected to be unveiled on Tuesday, March 22, 2022 by President Muhammadu Buhari.
Recalled that besides AIB, other private entities and government agencies that may be affected are Dominion, Evergreen Apple Nigeria, Caverton, ExecuJet hangars, office complex of the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), the Federal Road Service Corps (FRSC) and the towing companies close to the AIB-N regional headquarters.
Aviation stakeholders before the location new Chinese terminal in that corridor had advised that its location was not only wrong and that it was also not captured in the master plan of the airport, but the government went ahead to cite the terminal at its present location.
The demolished AIB-N Regional Headquarters houses its office complex, Command & Control Centre, office of investigators and Information Communication Technology (ICT) department.
Others are Training Centre, Mini Flight Safety Laboratory, which is used for downloading of flight recorders otherwise known as black boxes and investigators’ stores among others.
Most of the world class facilities at the AIB-N’s office in Lagos were provided within a space four years by the current AIB-N Commissioner/Chief Executive Officer, Engr. Akin Olateru and his management team.
AbelNews recalled that AIB-N management was compelled about two weeks ago to relocate its Lagos staff to Abuja without relocation allowance or a befitting office for them in the Federal Capital Territory(FCT).
AbelNews learnt that many of AIB-N who were forced to hurriedly relocate to FCT are hanging in hotels, while the junior workers are either squatting or hanging with their friends, a situation that was experienced over a decade during the General Ibrahim Babangida led military regime.
The online news platform also learnt that AIB-N staff who were forced to move to Abuja could not secure accommodation in the FCT due to high cost rent and paucity of funds, as they were neither paid their salaries nor given relocation allowances
The Airport landlord; FAAN had in February this year issued AIB-N and other private and public organisations in the same corridor where the demolished AIB-N Regional Headquarters was a two weeks’ ultimatum to relocate from its present location.
FAAN had contended that AIB and other companies were obstructing further expansion of the new terminal and that their demolition and relocation would give way for the apron of the new Chinese terminal to be expanded.
The former General Manager, Corporate Communications, FAAN Mrs. Henrietta Yakubu, had in a text message that confirmed the relocation.
She had explained that FAAN would give the affected organisations a new land within the airport environment, adding that the companies were on the path of the new terminal.
According to her, “There is no timeframe on their relocation, but they have been told to make plans to relocate. You know they can’t relocate within two weeks. The new terminal will definitely be opened to the public very soon and it will be connected to the old terminal.
Meanwhile, the online news website learnt that with the demolition of AIB-N , a government agency on Saturday by bulldozers from FAAN, the coast is now clear for other private and government entities to go down.
This, it was further learnt is given other organisations sleepless nights.
