The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria has urged the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) to correct the anomalies associated with the BOT agreement between Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Limited, operators of the Murtala Muhammed Airport 2 (MMA 2) and the Authority.
This call was made following a mediatory visit by Mr. Chidi Iwuzah, the Acting Director General of ICRC to both parties recently to iron out grey areas in the contractual agreement in the interest of the nation.
The BOT agreement granted Messrs Bi Courtney Limited was for the design, financing, construction and management of a domestic terminal building at the Murtala Muhammed Airport. The concession premises is limited to the domestic terminal, as clearly demarcated and delineated by beacon nos as contained in the survey plan.
A statement released by the General Manager, Corporate Communications, Mrs. Henrietta Yakubu states that, “For the purpose of emphasis, the General Aviation Terminal does not and could not have formed a part of the concession. Even before the terminal presently developed and occupied by BASL got burnt, the GAT had existed and operated independently on its own, BASL is only trying to reap where it has not sown. We, therefore, want to reiterate our position that GAT is not part of the concession granted Messrs Bi Courtney, neither had FAAN admitted to that assertion at any time”.
The statement further noted how essential it was to state that certain provisions in the concession agreement are negatively skewed against the overall interest of Nigeria and Nigerians and it hampers the growth and development of the industry. Any contract whose provisions are contrary to overriding public interest should not be allowed as no single individual or corporation is bigger than the nation Nigeria.
FAAN said it is open to a progressive review/collaboration that puts the interest of the over 180 million Nigerians as well as the growth and development of Nigeria first. They also reiterated their willingness to collaborate with partners and investors in this regard.
FAAN hopes and requests that the ICRC, in the interest of the nation and for the overall growth and development of the Nigerian aviation industry should fairly and justly mediate in this matter.
