The Joint National Assembly Committee on Aviation has scored Anambra State Governor, Chief Willie Obiano, high on the quality of work at the ongoing Anambra International Cargo Airport project.
The joint committee, comprising of members of the aviation committee in the House of Representatives and the Senate, was in the state at the weekend on an oversight duty at the project site, where Obiano, in the company of his wife, took them round.
Leader of the joint committee and the Chairman, Senate Committee on Aviation, Smart Adeyemi, who spoke after the tour, commended the governor for the quality of work and the enormity of the project.
Adeyemi said: “I have been privileged to travel to many countries, and each time I am in any airport around the world, I take out time to see what they have. I can attest that this is a massive project, and what you have just done is opening Anambra State up economically.
“By doing so, you are also helping to open Nigeria up economically too. Aviation is key to development of any country. If you talk about economic development, you must talk about that aviation.
“I am not in doubt that apart from the length of the runway, the quality of the project here is key, especially being that it is a cargo airport that can take all manner of aircraft. The people of the South-east region are very enterprising, and you have provided a platform for this region to reach its potential.
“I will tell you that whoever that will succeed you will have a job to do. The job will be to make this airport viable and not just for passengers but also for cargo. That person must start thinking of how to realise this. You have set the pace for your successor.”
Earlier, while conducting the lawmakers through the project, Obiano assured them that the project would be ready for use by April, insisting that the airport is a one of a kind in Africa, with the length and quality of the runway, among others components.
“This airport has the longest runway in Nigeria, except for the Murtala Muhammed Airport in Lagos. It is 3.7 kilometers, and if you add the two racers, that makes it 5.2 km. You can land or take off from either sides of the runway, and as you can see, it is a dual carriage way.
“This airport is going to be the very best in Africa, with a satellite lighting system that have not be seen anywhere else in Africa. We did this deliberately because we envisage that it is going to be a very busy airport.
“In five days, we would have finished everything about the runway. The apron is completed; the control tower is a seven floor architectural piece. In one month’s time, the airport will be functional. It may interest you to know that we did not borrow any money from anywhere for this project,” he said.