BusinessDay... the voice of business: FAAN spends N60m yearly on diesel to power generators

FAAN spends N60m yearly on diesel to power generators
================================================================================
TUNJI OLAWUNI on 07 May, 2008 02:00:00
 
Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) spends N60 million yearly at N5
million a month on diesel to power generating sets at the nation’s airports,
Senate Committee on Aviation disclosed yesterday.
Chairman of the committee Anyim Ude made this disclosure when he presented the
report of the committee of its findings on poor state of safety in the Nigerian
airports. He said the amount summed up to N1.560 billion for 26 years since
flight operations started at the airports in November 1982.
The senate however in adopting the eight point recommendations of the committee
directed the committee to carry out a public hearing on the disbursement and
utilization of the N19.5 billion intervention fund released by the Federal
government in 2006 for the rehabilitation and development of infrastructure in
the aviation industry.
The senate in accepting the recommendation asked the federal government to
urgently come out with a strategic Master Plan for the development and growth of
the aviation industry.
According to it, “the master plan should cover physical development of
Nigerian airports to avoid more aviation disasters in the country”.
The Senate directed FAAN, NAMA, NCAA, SAHCOL and AIB to as a matter of urgency
“put in place a well-structured and implementable pension and gratuity policy
for their staff”.
It also asked NCAA to encourage local airlines to replace their fleet of old
aircrafts with modern ones by working with aircraft manufacturers, aircraft
lessors and the banks taking advantage of the Cape Town Convention domesticated
in the new Civil Aviation Act, 2006. he senate also directed that the
recommendations of Paul Dike presidential panel on security should be fully
implemented by the Aviation parastatals with a proper security structure created
and manned by professionals.