Also the Committee has invited the Contractor that handled the General Aviation Terminal (GAT) project that has been marked for demolition due to structural defects, to come and explain how much that was spent on the project and why it failed.
Chairman, House Committee on Aviation, Hon. Nnolim Nnaji who gave the warning when he led members of his committee for an oversight function on the airport said the National Assembly and indeed the Nigerian people would not accept any excuse from the contractor for any eventual failure.
His warning came following the Contractor, Mahbub Khan of PW’s wavering answer to the question of when he was going to deliver the project, trying to give excuse that they were having difficulty in getting granite dust.
Hon. Nnaji had put the question to him after the Consultant, Baba Mohammed Sani had also complained that the only challenge the contractor has was the absence of granite dust.
But Nnaji and his team, who commended the contractor for the quality of work so far done however, reminded him that he promised the last time they were at the site with the Minister, that he would complete the work for the reopening of the Enugu airport before Easter and charged him to ensure that he kept to his promise.
He reiterated the importance of the airport to the people of the South East geo-political zone who are predominantly Christians and why it should be ready for them to use by Easter because of the importance of Easter celebration by Christians.
The House Committee Chairman noted that the Enugu State Governor, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi had put in a lot to ensure that airport comes back to life including pulling down structures and promising access road to the VOR/DME facilities.
The Committee which was accompanied in the inspection by the Enugu State Commissioner for works and Infrastructure, Greg Nnaji, South East representative, Sir Chris Okoye and officials of FAAN and NAMA, inspected the VOR/DME and Meteorological facilities, ILS installations 26/08, Runway Civil/AFL works and Cargo site.
Speaking to newsmen after the inspection, Nnaji who seemed to have recognized the said challenge of the contractor said,
“But most importantly, we need a good runway. Yes, we are targeting April for the Easter but like I said we need a good runway, we don’t want to come back to this again, whatever it is going to take us, we need a good runway. So we just have to have it in our mind, we have a target for Easter but we still need a good runway.”
On the other facilities he said, “The runway first, in addition we have a brown new ILS, DME from NAMA, also the perimeter fencing is on going, the contractor promised that maybe between six to eight weeks if everything is normal that he will complete.
“We are also expecting but not now, we are expecting that the international terminal that is being done by the CCEC will be completed by the end of the year if well funded. They also handed CCEC the construction of international cargo terminal, so these are the things that will support the Akanu Ibiam International Airport. So everybody is working to see that this airport comes back to life. Hopefully it will be completed by Easter, let’s keep it that way.”
Earlier, the Consultant, Sani had assured that the target would be met as according to him,
He further said, “We did a correction profile of the runway, we raised the center and dropped it by 1.5 per cent in both directions. The history has shown us that, that runway became virtually flat and without that slop when the rains come the water stays there and subsequently brings problem to aircraft and seizes light into the lid.
“Before we even came to do this repair work, the runway has already been extended to 3000 meters length; it used to be 2.4 kilometers so by 600 meters addition it became 3000 which is long enough to take the designed aircraft of 747 400 or anything below it.
On when the runway will be delivered, the Consultant said, “With little challenges but we are still on the neck of our contractors. We have little challenges but we are on the neck of our contractors to deliver, our target is still the same Easter.
“So far the work on the asphalt, the corrective layer has been laid, we are now going start doing in that end the wearing cost. He has achieved a lot and we have enough time to finish.
“The only challenge, real challenge they have and we have told how to go about it is the absence of granite dust, it is the type of dust that can be used for this work.”
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