NEWS AGENCY OF NIGERIA
Aviation , Defence/Security

Airport police smash fake COVID-19 certificate racketeers

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By Yunus Yusuf

The Criminal Investigation Department (CID), of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) says it has arrested five suspected syndicates, forging fake COVID-19 certificates.

The Commissioner of Police, Airport Command and Aviation Security (AVSEC ) CP Umar Bature disclosed the arrest on Thursday at a news  briefing held at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport (MMIA) Lagos.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that the Lagos State Government on Dec. 29, 2020,  raised alarm over alleged sale of fake COVID-19 test results in the state.

The government warned that processes were being put in place to clamp down on both buyers and sellers.

Bature said that out of the five suspects, 35-year old Adewale Aderele was an alleged  guarantor to one of the suspects who was now at large.

The  syndicates included: Archibong Idorenyin, 34, owner of DAT  Cyber Cafe, who allegedly forged the Virology Screening test results, Abdulmalik Ibrahim (24) and Moses Sunday (20) who are staff of DAT Internet Cafe.

The other suspect was Popoola Adewale of Patovilki Airport cleaning services.

Two of the suspects, 35-year-old Shehu Imam, who allegedly took illicit assignments from the airport to DAT internet cafe for the generation of  fake COVID-19 certificates and Adeola Darlington of Skyblue Services Ltd. were now at large.

According to the commissioner, they  also lure passengers to the airport where various sums are extorted from them. In this case, N50, 000.

“On Feb. 18, Popoola Adewale and Adeola Darlington who have access to all the nooks and crannies of the international airport, approached one Michael Osagbogu who was on a queue of a  London bound aircraft and allegedly offers to help him procure  COVID-19 certificate.

“They however, cornered the passenger to an isolated toilet at the airport where N50, 000 was extorted from him.

“Thereafter, the victim was handed over to Shehu Imam who took him to Archibong Idorenyin, owner of the internet cafe at 4, Oriyomi Street Ikeja.”

According to the commissioner, some of the suspects have taken to their heels but concerted efforts are being made by the combined team of detectives of the airport police command and AVSEC  to track them down.

He also informed that the suspects confessed to the crime and exhibits, including N50,000 and laptops used to generate the fake COVID-19 certificates as well as the certificates being used as exhibits.

“They will soon be charged to court where justice will take its course,” Umar promised.

The airport police command however, warned that the public should follow due process in obtaining or procuring COVID-19 certificates to avoid unscrupulous syndicates.

The CP said the suspects would be charged to court on Friday morning. (NAN)

Aviation , Health

COVID-19: Arik Air seeks priority vaccination for aviation workers

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By Taiye Olayemi

Capt. Roy Ilegbodu, Chief Executive Officer, Arik Air, has called for the immediate vaccination of aviation workers as COVID-19 frontline workers.

Ilegbodu made this call when he hosted the Publisher of Atqnews and organiser AKWAABA Africa Travel and Tourism Market, Mr Ikechi Uko, at his office on Wednesday in Lagos.

Ilegbodu, in a statement issued by Uko, said that prompt vaccination of aviation workers would help keep the economy running and enable people travel knowing they were safe.

Uko was at Arik Air office to deliver an invitation for the annual Abuja Jabamah travellers award which Arik Air had been chosen as the Nigerian airline of the decade, from 2010 to 2020.

He said the award was slated for March 27, as he justified the choice of Arik Air as the airline of choice.

“Arik Air started operations in 2006 and was once the biggest airline in West Africa with 30 aircraft in its fleet.

”’The fleets were flying to London-UK, New York-USA, Johannesburg, South Africa, Dakar, Senegal, Banjul, Gambia, Accra-Ghana and Dubai-UAE along with numerous domestic operations.

“Today, it flies mainly within Nigeria, from the fleet it inherited, many aircrafts are grounded but effectively using six aircrafts.

“Since the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) took over the airline in 2017, many of the leased aircraft have been returned to the owners or has been repossessed through court orders.

“Four planes were returned to France and two classic airplanes abandoned in Europe were seized by an European supplier.

”Out of the two A340 planes, one was parked at the airport in Lagos while the other was in storage in France,” he said.

Uko noted that three aircraft were recovered by the Canadian Export Development Bank, as a B737-800 went for C-check in Lithuania and there was now an attempt by Lufthansa to seize it.

He said another B737-800 had been abandoned in South Africa and so many creditors were trying to seize as many of the assets as they could lay their hands on.

“In spite of all these troubles, Arik Air is still the biggest airline brand out of Nigeria, even with the shrunk fleet, it is still one of the biggest airlines in West Africa.

“It has three Q400 aircraft, two CRJ-900, one B737-700 and another B737-700 is expected back from checks soon.

“Before AMCON took over Arik, it was indebted to a lot of firms, they are all trying to seize one asset or another, so far, the managers have managed the situation well.

” Arik is in receivership and inherited 2,500 staff but now has 1,600 on payroll, 900 of those are at home because of the COVID-19 lockdown fallout.

”Some are being called back as soon as more activities are added, they are paid some allowances while at home,” he said.

Uko noted that the airline had so far proved resilient as well as demystified the myth that no Nigerian airline with 10 aircraft last beyond 10 years.

He said it was hoped that Arik recovers and grows back to be the pride of Nigeria that it used to be.

” Arik is still a global brand from Nigeria, Kudos goes to the Founders of the Airline and the workers who helped build the brand,” he said.

In his response, Capt. Ilegbodu thanked the organisers for the honour and promised that Arik Air would attend the awards in Abuja.

He also commended the organisers for their consistency in promoting travel and tourism in Nigeria. (NAN)

Aviation

Air Peace resumes Lagos – Accra flights March 15- Official

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By Yusuf  Yunus

The Nigeria’s leading airline, Air Peace, says it will resume its daily flight operations from the Lagos hub into Accra on March 15.

The airline Spokesperson, Stanley Olisa, in a statement on Tuesday in Lagos, said that Lagos-Accra flight would depart daily at 7.00 a.m, while Accra-Lagos flight would depart at 7.40 a.m.

He said that the resumption of Accra flights was in response to the popular demand, as the flying public have been anticipating it.

“You would recall that we suspended our Accra flights consequent upon the pandemic lockdown last year.

“But, we have some exciting news for our esteemed customers as we are resuming flight operations into the Ghanaian city pretty soon.

“The flying public have been expectant of this,” he said.

Olisa, also expressed the readiness of Air Peace to kick off the scheduled flights into Ilorin from Abuja and Lagos.

According to him, the airline is already finalising plans to commence Ilorin flights soon.

He reiterated the Air Peace’s commitment to providing peaceful connectivity across the domestic, regional and international destinations and satisfying the air travel needs of Nigerians.

NAN reports that Air Peace is an indigenous airline servicing 16 domestic routes, five regional routes and two international destinations including Johannesburg.

It also has a varied fleet of 26 aircraft comprising the ultra-modern Embraer 195-E2 jet, Boeing 777, Embraer 145, Boeing 737 and Dornier 328 jet. (NAN)

Aviation

Ibom Air lifts 500,000 passengers in 21 months – Official

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Isaiah Eka
The Ibom Air, an Akwa Ibom owned airline on Monday said it had so far  lifted  no fewer than 500,000 passengers since commencement of operations on June 7, 2019.
This is contained in a statement issued  by Mrs Anniekan Essienette, the Group Manager Marketing and Communication, Ibom Airlines Limited, in Uyo.
Essienette quoted the Chief Operating Officer, Mr  George Uriesi, as saying this while the organisation marked the milestone achievement.
 
She said that Ibom Air had quickly established a reputation for on-time performance and excellent service in the nation’s aviation industry.
“We are very pleased to record this key milestone of 500,000 passengers.
 
“We are most thankful to our customers for believing in us and continuing to rely on our unique proposition of schedule reliability, on-time departures and excellent service. 
“As we continue to grow apace, we are determined to continue to deliver on our customers now very high expectations.
“It is the only domestic Airline in Nigeria that publishes its schedule reliability and on-time performance statistics monthly.
“The airline has consistently maintained above 90 per cent performance since inception. It operates daily flights between Uyo, Lagos, Abuja, Calabar and Enugu,” she said.
She regretted that the company would have clocked this number around November 2020, but for the three and a half months COVID-19 lockdown.
Essienette, however, declared that the milestone was an indication of steady customer uptake and validation of services. (NAN)
Aviation

APC berates Delta Govt. over concession of Asaba Int’l Airport

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By Ifeanyi Olannye

The Delta Chapter of the All Progressive Congress (APC), on Thursday, berated the state government over the concessioning of the Asaba International Airport to a concessionaire.

The party’s reaction was conveyed in a statement signed by its State Publicity Secretary (Caretaker), Mr Sylvester Imonina in Asaba.

Titled “Asaba Airport Concessionaire, another monumental fraud”, Imonina said the party concurred that “the government has no business in business”.

“This will mean that the business of any serious minded government is to provide enabling environment for private businesses to thrive.

“It is on this premise that Delta APC supports any government that is transparent in the concessionaire of public properties.

“Unfortunately, the fraud called concessionaire of Asaba Airport will go down in history as the greatest bleak, shady business and economic coup against the people of Delta State.

“It is an affront to common sense that an airport business, wherein more than N40 billion was invested, was concessioned for N4 billion and to yield N100 million annually because of vested interests,” the party stated.

He added that it was shocking that there was no advertisement nor adequate information on plans by the government to concession the airport.

The party challenged the State Government to put in the public domain all that transpired about the concession of the airport.

“Also, the government should show to the people of the state the corporate bodies that took part in the exercise and how much each of them bidded.

“We call on the good people of Delta State and all men of goodwill to kick against this obvious shenanigans called concessions of Asaba Airport.” (NAN).

Aviation

FG takes over Sir Ahmadu Bello International Airport in Kebbi 

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By Ibrahim Bello

The Federal Government has taken over the Sir Ahmadu Bello International Airport in Kebbi, Alhaji Abubakar Ladan, the state Commissioner for Works and Transport, has said.

Ladan who made the disclosure to newsmen on Thursday in Birnin Kebbi said the airport had not been sold to any private individual, contrary to rumour.

“There is no iota of truth in the rumour going round that the state government is planning to sell the Sir Ahmadu Bello International Airport to a private individual.

“All the airports in the country are in the exclusive list. There is no way any state government can convert them as their own or sell them to individuals,’’ the commissioner said.

Ladan explained that the federal government had taken over 10 of such airports after their completion by state governments.

He said: “The airports include those of Ekiti, Gombe, Anambra, Nassarawa, Kebbi, Jigawa, Ebonyi and Benue States, among others.

“I don’t know how the story came about that the airport (Sir Ahamdu Bello International Airport) had been sold.

“Who was it sold to? I want to use this occasion to tell you the true story of the airport.

“The aviation sector is in the exclusive list and any state that wants to construct an airport must get a cleare approval from the federal government.

“So, once you construct the airport, you only have the manager, but the technical crew handling the airport is federal government’s staff and those of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA).

“You do not have the right to regulate the airport. We only agreed to allow the federal government to take over the airport because of management issue and other things.

“It is not the issue of sales; federal government took over the airport of Kebbi State and we demanded that the amount we used to construct it be refunded to the state.”

The commissioner said that President Muhammadu Buhari had approved the refund in March 2020.

According to him, the letter sent to the state said that the president had approved the refund of N16 billion to the state government, being the amount spent to construct the airport.

“The process of refunding the money is still on and as soon as the 2021 budget is implemented, the state government will be refunded,” Ladan added. (NAN)

Aviation

PTF to prosecute inbound passengers disobeying COVID-19 protocols

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By Abujah Racheal

The Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19, says it will apprehend and quarantine inbound passengers for disobeying COVID-19 safety protocols.

The PTF also said that it would ensure such violators borne the cost of testing for the coronavirus.

Dr Mukhtar Mohammed, PTF National Incident Manager, stated this on Monday in Abuja at the PTF COVID-19 national briefing.

“We intend to apply full force of the law over such violators and this includes fines and imprisonment.

“Our aim is not to witch-hunt or punish anyone but to ensure people travel safely and when they return to the country that they do not constitute nuisance to their loved ones and the community.

“PTF is aware of the report of syndicates at some international airports outside Nigeria which specialse in providing fake results to innocent Nigerians who are travelling back home.

“While investigating the matter; I will like to reiterate that it is the responsibility of passengers returning to Nigeria to ensure that they are tested before they start returning.

“You cannot be given a negative result when your samples have not been taken, please understand this and comply,” he said.

According to Mohammed, it is important to note that on arrival here, if you have a fake result, you will be quarantined in any of our facilities and you will bear the expenses of the facility, feeding and the laboratory test and after that you are also liable to prosecution.

Mohammed said that the task force had received reports of technical challenges experienced by people returning to the country, adding that it had set up a backup manual process and communicated same to all relevant stakeholders, including the airlines, the Ministry of Health and diplomatic missions.

He pointed out that technical challenges were bound to occur from time to time.

Mohammed said the task force believed that its technical team would be able to speedily resolve issues as soon as they occurred and that the backup system would also operate as an alternative to the online platform. (NAN)

Aviation

Delta Govt to upgrade Asaba Airport – Official

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Delta Government on Friday said  measures are geared towards the upgrading of Asaba International Airport to a Category 9 Airport to enable it receive bigger planes.

The Special Projects Director of the Airport, Mr Austin Ayemidejor, disclosed this to newsmen shortly after the arrival of United Nigeria Airline’s Maiden flight to Asaba.

According to Ayemidejor, the airline marked 5N-BWZ which was fully booked with passengers from Lagos, touched down at exactly 11.40am.

He said as activities at the airport near peak, it had become imperative to upgrade the Airport to welcome bigger planes.

He added that government had also written to the Nigeria Airspace Management Authority (NAMA) to increase the operational hours to 11pm.

“We intend to upgrade the Airport to category nine which will make it have the capacity to receive Boeing 737 and Boeing 777.

“We have applied to the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NAMA) for approval to enable us operate beyond sunrise to sunset by extending operational hours to 11pm.

“Once that is done, there will be more activities and it is important to let you know that this is the fifth airline that is operating into the Asaba Airport.

“Already, we have Air peace, AZMAN, Aero, and Arik. United Nigeria is the fifth airline that is coming in,” he said

Ayemidejor also disclosed that the sixth airline ValueJet is likely to come in a couple of weeks with assurances from the Managing Director of Ibom Air that very shortly too they will start operations perhaps by the second week of March.

“So the level of activities here is very encouraging because the market is large, it’s very huge and so we need more airlines to operate here.

“We have lots of patronage from the Eastern part of the country particularly the Onitsha area, and then the other cities around Delta for purpose of patronage,” Ayemidejor said.

On the non operationalisation of the Instrument Landing System (ILS), he said the full components of the lights, the localisers were all fully installed but were yet to be calibrated.

He said the calibration was interrupted with the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic, adding that NAMA will come in again soon to finish up with the calibration.

“Once the ILS and the localisers are fully calibrated then it will become functional for the airlines to use them,” Ayemidejor added.

Earlier, Captain of the Airline, Lawani Abubakar, expressed delight at the companies advancement into Asaba.

He said the airline will increase its operational frequency into the airport with time.

“It was fantastic and the Airport is looking very very promising because Asaba is a very good place to fly into and we have good passenger figure and then we intend to increase the frequency with time.

“The runway is fine but the ILS is not serviceable at the moment, however with full visibility the approach system they have now is good.

“The Asaba Airport is safe and we have very good aircraft for our customers,” Abubakar said. (NAN)

 

Aviation

Matawalle pledges commitment to completion of Gusau Cargo Airport

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By Abubakar Ahmed
Gov. Bello Matawalle of Zamfara, has reiterated his administration’s commitment to complete the Cargo Airport project it initiated in 2019  in Gusau.
This is contained in a statement signed by the Director-General of Media to the governor, Yusuf Idris, and issued to newsmen in Gusau on Sunday.
According to the statement, the governor made the remark when he paid an unscheduled visit to the ongoing project site along Kaura Namoda road on the outskirts of Gusau.
Idris said that the governor expressed satisfaction with the quality of work having cautioned the contractor against the use of substandard materials for the project.
“My administration is focused on the enthronment of a new Zamfara state and the airport project is just one of the facilities we promised to provide.
“Already, we are giving the Government House a new look in addition to new chalets that have been constructed within the government house.
“As you are all aware, the state House of Assembly has also been transformed to fit into modern times and we have ensured that the security challenges that had bedeviled the state have been drastically reduced making the state more attractive to investors,” Matawalle added.
According to Idris, the governor had disclosed that local and foreign investors were showing more  interest in coming to invest in the state.
The spokesman said, the governor urged the people of the state to continue to pray for the success of his administration so that the dividends of democracy would reach all communities. (NAN)
Aviation

FG to harness NiMet activities for national development

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By Gabriel Agbeja

The Federal Government is to harness activities of the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) for national development, in all relevant sectors that rely on its services, Sen. Hadi Sirika, Minister of Aviation, said on Tuesday, in Abuja.

Speaking at the presentation of NiMet’s  2021 Seasonal Climate Prediction (SCP), under the theme:  “Supporting the Economy cope with the Challenges of COVID-19 Global Pandemic in Nigeria, “ Sirika added that taking such a measure would improve the outputs of every sector that rely on NiMet`s prediction for their functional activities.

“The Federal Government under the able leadership of Mr. President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Force, Muhammadu Buhari is very much committed to supporting the advancement of Meteorology for national development in all relevant sectors.

“ I shall,  in this respect, continue to support and encourage NiMet to do more in order to meet the aspirations of Mr. President.

“In the wake of increasing trends of uncertainties regarding weather in a changing climate, NiMet has continued to strive for excellence in meeting national, regional and global expectations in weather and climate service delivery,” he said.

According to him, the predictions from NiMet, on a seasonal timescale, had evolved over time with improvement in methodology, and the lead-time, including the deployment of more analytical tools and models, improved knowledge and scientific skills and broadening of stakeholders and the user community.

NiMet`s Director- General, Prof. Sani Mashi, said the agency had deepened efforts in transitioning from only rainfall as a prediction, to more climate variables, such that stakeholders that benefit from NiMet’s predictions now ranged from primarily the agricultural sector, to other relevant weather and climate-sensitive sectors of the economy.

“ These evolvements have necessitated a change in the nomenclature of the document from Seasonal Rainfall Prediction (SRP) to Seasonal Climate Prediction (SCP) to reflect aforementioned improvements there by truly reflecting the contents of the publication.

“The SCP is a national publication designed to provide climate information early, with the aim of assisting all relevant stakeholders and user communities to factor the predictions in their policies and activities for the year,“ he said.

The director general said the 2021 SCP document contained valuable information for planning activities in all sectors of the economy.

He added that NiMet predictions focused on Agricultural Activities , Security, Water Resources, Health, Environment, Transportation, Power and Energy, Marine, Construction, Oil and Gas, Telecommunications, insurance and Finance , Trade and Commerce, Disaster Risk Reduction, among others.

In his speech, the Chairman, Senate Committee on Aviation, Sen. Smart Adeyemi, commended the minister and the director general for their laudable effort  at sustaining the agency, but lamented the absence of some ministries that ought to be in attendance at the event, for the useful information that they could harvest from the SCP.

“It is a rascality in government, it will be addressed, “ he added. (NAN)

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