The Managing Director, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) Mrs Olubunmni kuku has announced plans to establish magistrate courts in airport premises across the country to swiftly address violations of airport rules and anti-touting regulations.
The move is aimed at ensuring a safer and more comfortable environment for genuine airport users.
The MD FAAN, made the announcement during a meeting with heads of security agencies at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA) in Abuja.
The meeting was convened to brief airport stakeholders on recent developments, outline the authority’s strategic goals, and discuss ways to enhance passenger experience and facilitation.
Mrs. Kuku identified the presence of touts and loitering by members of the public as a major challenge to providing a comfortable experience for genuine airport users.
“There are people who have absolutely no business being at the airport, and they continue to create issues for us,” she said.
“We have an anti-touting taskforce, and as it is, we are going to start the prosecution onsite of those engaging in these illicit activities or loitering around the airport environment and harassing passengers. This doesn’t happen elsewhere around the world, and the airport should be a safe space.”
The MD/CE also addressed the issue of car hire operators violating processes and protocol, warning that such behavior would no longer be tolerated.
She emphasized the need to reduce manual baggage search at the international wing of the airport, proposing a process where baggage would be screened by machines, and security officials would view the contents in real-time, only pulling aside luggage that requires secondary screening.
Mrs Kuku said, “We have to streamline our efforts. We need to improve processes at the airport. This is the 21st century, and we must keep up with the times”.
She also announced that the Terminal C of the NAIA would be ready for use by December 2024, with plans to develop more international routes to take advantage of the underutilized International Terminal.
NAIA Military Airport Commander, Air Force Group Captain Abbas Hashim, thanked the MD/CE for convening the meeting and called for more regular meetings and better cooperation between the agencies and FAAN.
