The Akwa Ibom State Governor Umo Eno has disclosed that his predecessor Governor Udom Emmanuel commissioned uncompleted International Terminal Building at the Victor Attah International Airport (VAIA) in Uyo, towards tail end of his second term in office.
Penpushing reports that Eno made this known to journalists at Government House, Uyo, while highlighting his administration’s achievements, at an event organised to mark his second year in office.
The Governor while responding to a question about tourism development, a key focus of his economic blueprint, the Arise Agenda emphasized that he met the project at almost 40 per cent completion
“With Ibom Air, which can fly people, and we are soon going regional, you need to know what we have done to our airport terminal. We met it at almost 40 per cent completion. We are almost there’, he said
“We’ve added a second taxiway for the airport. We are doing an apron building. We are developing a lot about tourism. When we finish, maybe in the next two years, we will be able to put this roadmap at a tourism summit, tie all together, and then be able to do destination marketing’, Eno added.
‘As stated earlier, three projects: the airport terminal building, MRO facility, and taxiway with apron were commissioned by former Governor Emmanuel at an elaborate ceremony on 28 May 2023’.
‘However, two years after the ceremony, the state government has continued to allocate money for the same projects, indicating they were uncompleted at commissioning’, the Governor stressed
Penpushing further reports that he said tourism is the most significant employer of labour in the world and shared his experience about the tourism opportunities in Kigali, the Rwandan capital, when he was invited to attend a conference there.
The Governor stated that the experience ignited him to revisit the abandoned International Conference Centre and a hotel in the state, adding that his administration can create its own Kigali around here and stop capital flight
Penpushing also reports that Eno added that tourism will boost the internally generated revenue of the state, pointing out that Akwa Ibom state people are hospitable, and with good food
The record, however, showed that a review of the Akwa Ibom state’s 2025 budget indicates that the government has allocated N8.5 billion for the already-commissioned airport terminal building.
Penpushing reports that the state government still in the 2025 budget, allocated N1.2 billion for the construction of an international terminal building at the Victor Attah International Airport (VAIA).
The findings, however, showed that it is unclear whether this money is intended for the same terminal, while in same vein, the 2025 budget allocates N5 billion for Apron construction for the new terminal, N2 billion for the hangar floor, and N1 billion for the completion of the MRO’s back-of-house facility.
Penpushing further reports that the budget equally allocates N1 billion for the completion of the taxiway with an apron, and the same project was allocated N500 million in the 2023 revised budget, N9.6 billion in the 2024 revised budget.
The findings also indicated that of the N9.6 billion, N1.5 billion was released to it between January and September 2024, while N8.5 billion is allocated to it in the 2025 budget, however, the Commissioner for Information, Aniekan Umanah, was yet to respond to the development as at the time of this report.
Penpushing reports that it is recalled that former Senate President, Bukola Saraki, on May 26, 2023, a day before former Governor Udom Emmanuel completed his second term in office commissioned the terminal building said to have the capacity to process a million passengers yearly
The records revealed that besides the Airport Terminal Building, the Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) facility, a new taxiway, and an apron extension at the airport were also commissioned simultaneously on the same day.
Penpushing further reports that the former Governor in his remarks at the said event, said the state would share the newly commissioned Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) facility with the Nigerian Air Force to help maintain their fighter jets in the country.
“I’ve tried to talk to the Chief of Air Staff recently; I don’t see any reason why our Air Force should be going outside the country to maintain or overhaul their fighter jets’, Emmanuel had said.
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