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From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja
House of Representatives has set up an Ad-hoc Committee to investigate the concession of airports in the country and report back to it for further legislative action.
This followed the adoption of a motion by Kama Nkemkanma on “need investigate the concession of Airports in Nigeri” plenary.
Nkemkanma, in his motion informed the House that most of the viable airports were commissioned to foreign firms through Federal Executive Council (FEC) resolutions that allegedly did not follow due process.
According to him, the outcome of the concession exercise is allegedly the enrichment of a few Nigerians and their foreign cohorts at the detriment of the country.
“Our major airports in Lagos, Abuja, and Kano have remained by consistently subjects of controversies due to entrenched personal interests that have undermined the laws of the land, irrespective of the occasional efforts of our anti-corruption agencies like the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and Independent Corrupt Practices Commission;
“The myopic personal interests of these economic vampires have relegated our so called international airports to mere airstrip status after almost seven decades in the industry, and
can never be compared with global renowned airports such as Heathrow, Dubai, Amsterdam, Tokyo, Qatar, Vancouver, and others.
“Even on the African continent, where one out of every six Africans is a Nigerian population -wise, the South African pairs of Tambo-Johannesburg and Cape Town, Cairo, Casablanca-Morocco and Houari Boumediene in Algeria, have all outpaced Nigeria and we also lag behind South Africa, Kenya, and Ethiopian Airlines, “ he added.
Nkemkanma further stated “ that our national historical public policy journey from indigenization, Commercialisation,
Privatisation, Public partnerships, concessions, and others has fetched us nothing rather than monumental embarrassment, massive corruption, and controversies in the Aviation and other
sectors.”
Similarly, the House, at Wednesday plenary, adopted a motion by Yusuf Ahmed Doro, calling for an Ad-hoc Committee to investigate the activities of the Nigeria Sovereign Wealth Authority
from its inception to date, to ascertain if it is in tandem with the enabling law.
Doro, in his motion, noted that in compliance with the provision of the NSIA Act 2011signed in May, 2011 the
fund was allocated an initial US$l billion (Naira equivalent) in seed capital and other subsequent allocations to the funds by the federation.
“The NSIA Funds is composed of three distinct funds, (the Stabilization, future Generation and Nigeria Infrastructure funds respectively) each with specific investment and development objectives.
“Also aware that some of the managed funds by the Authority includes the Presidential Infrastructure Development Fund (PIDF) where US$1 billion was injected for the construction of
Second Niger Bridge, Abuja-Kaduna-Kano Highway and Lagos Ibadan Expressway,” he stated.
