14 August 2020. NAN: The Nigerian government vowed to prosecute perpetrators guilty of destroying the ongoing concrete perimeter fence, covering about 2km, of the Akanu Ibiam International airport, Enugu south east Nigeria.
Speaking to newsmen after inspecting the site to ascertain the level of destruction, the Minister of Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, expressed sadness that the perpetrators could take such an unlawful act by destroying a “national security asset”, at a time the federal government was on the course of re-opening the Enugu Airport, on August 30, as promised.
Narrating what transpired, Sirika disclosed that “while the rehabilitation of the Enugu International airport was going on, a certain cantankerous individual by name Arch John Emejulu came with bulldozers and hundreds of armed thugs and destroyed more than 2km of our concrete fence”.
The Minister, who described the action as unfortunate, unbecoming and unacceptable, said that “he (Emejulu) has given the government the opportunity to show how not to wilfully destroy public asset belonging to over 200 million people”.
While reiterating the commitment of the federal government to the reopening of the Enugu Airport on August 30 as earlier promised, Sirika, expressed dismay that in spite of the efforts of President Muhammadu Buhari, to bring the Airport back to its glory, with the nation’s limited resources and “at this very austere time”, to contribute to trade and commerce as well as guarantee safety of air travelers, “a certain cantankerous individual appeared from nowhere with bulldozers and destroyed this national security asset”.
“It is a wrong time to test our resolve. The individual will certainly be dealt with maximally without recourse. I am sure he will regret doing this and of course this is also an opportunity for government to show that no one can take the law into his hands and wilfully destroy national asset belonging to 200 million people.
“This will certainly be the end of this kind of recklessness. We will not forgive him. The Chief of Air Staff, the Inspector General of Police, the Director General, DSS, others, will be directed to do the needful and bring him to book, so that anybody who would contemplate doing something like this in future will have a rethink.
“We are government in place; we are not a lawless country; we are not in a banana republic, we are in the Federal Republic of Nigeria governed by laws. Certainly, this is not acceptable and I am sure that we are equal to the task of rising in defence of our national asset”, the Minister maintained.
Sirika who thanked President Buhari “for his wisdom to allow this procurement to continue by providing the money, also appreciated the South East Governors especially Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, who he said “has helped us in this procurement and has responded to all our requests for the actualization of this laudable project”.
He noted that Gov. Ugwuanyi visited the site of the destroyed fence earlier and was at the airport to meet with him over the matter, stressing that it shows his level of commitment to the realization of the Enugu airport project.
