*Maintains planned overhaul has no National Assembly approval 

*Keyamo defends planned  upgrade, gives details of facility refurbishment 

*Declares terminal one will be totally demolished, rebuilt 

*Checks show costlier airport expansion, modernisation projects globally

Chuks Okocha, Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja and Chinedu Eze in Lagos

The opposition coalition, the African Democratic Congress (ADC),  yesterday condemned the Bola Tinubu administration’s plan to spend over N712 billion on the renovation of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) in Lagos.
In a statement issued by the ADC’s National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the party questioned whether the renovation plan and its associated cost had received approval from the National Assembly, describing the expenditure as reckless and insensitive.

Last week, the federal government announced that it was embarking on a major renovation project at the MMIA in Lagos, valued at N712 billion. The extensive upgrade, it said, aims to modernise the aging infrastructure of the country’s busiest airport and bring it in line with global standards for aviation facilities.
But the ADC strongly condemned what it described as the outrageous value of the airport renovation announced by the Tinubu administration, characterising it as another brazen act of fiscal recklessness and official insensitivity, which it claimed  further confirmed how far the All Progressives Congress (APC)  government is removed from the reality of the suffering people of Nigeria.

”It is hard to understand how expending N712 billion into renovating an airport that already received significant upgrades in recent years makes fiscal sense in a country where public universities wallow in chronic austerity, where basic medical care has become a luxury that only the rich can afford, where millions of Nigerians have been thrown into poverty as a result of government’s ill-conceived policies
”The Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos remains functional and serviceable. What the aviation sector needs is not another gold-plated terminal, but proper maintenance, enhanced efficiency and the expansion of regional airports to boost real connectivity across Nigeria.
”Just for context, the amount of money that is being funnelled into the renovation of one airport, approximately $500 million is the same total amount that was spent to build four new airports in Abuja, Lagos, Kano and Port Harcourt in 2014 via a Chinese loan that is yet to be repaid.  

”This same Murtala Muhammed Airport had a new international terminal that was commissioned by President Muhammadu Buhari in March 2022,” the ADC maintained.
Quoting media reports at the time, the ADC noted that the said facility was built on a landmass of approximately 56,000 square metres, with 66 check-in counters and has the capacity to process 14 million passengers annually.
It added that it was equipped with censored conveyor belt, seven jet bridges, 10 ultra-modern cooling systems, heat extraction in the baggage hall, ample space for duty free shops and banks, recreational areas for children, 22-room hotel for stop-overs among others.

However, THISDAY got data of new airports and repairs that were done in the last one year, including the new Angola International Airport which was built by a Chinese company.  The airport cost $3.8 billion (£3 billion) and covers an area of 43 hectares, with two modern runways and three terminal buildings.
By a THISDAY estimation, based on the current rates of 1usd to N1,594, the N712 billion, which is the project cost, equals about $447 million.
But other airports and their cost in the last one year, according to a report by Airport Industry Review (AIR) were: The Otay Mesa Metropolitan Airpark in US, which cost $1 billion; Henri Coanda International Airport New Terminal in Romania, put at $1.04 billion and Vaclav Havel Airport Terminal 2 Expansion in Czech Republic, valued at $1.19 billion.

Also, Burbank Bob Hope Airport New Terminal in US cost $1.2 billion; Kaohsiung International Airport New Terminals in Taiwan was $1.26 billion; King Abdulaziz International Airport Terminal Expansion in Saudi Arabia was put at $1.3 billion, while the value of the Sacramento International Airport in US, was pegged at $1.3 billion.
Besides, Brisbane Airport Expansion in Australia was valued at $3.3 billion; Viracopos International Airport Modernisation Project in Brazil was put at $4.62 billion, while Dallas Forth Worth International Airport Terminal in the US was valued at $4.8 billion.

However, the coalition party said that it was important to note that although the airport in Lagos was designed to process 14 million passengers in a year, available reports indicated that it only handled 6.5 million passengers in 2024, less than half of its capacity.
”We therefore wonder if it is this same airport that is now scheduled for renovation or another one. The inescapable conclusion is either that the previous APC government had lied to Nigerians about what it did with the Lagos Airport or the current government is about to spend such a huge amount of money on a project that already exists.
”Perhaps even more troubling is the fact that this massive expenditure, approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) on July 31, 2025, has not received any  backing from the National Assembly and it is not in any of the approved budgets.

”Is this now how the government spends close to a trillion naira without appropriation, without scrutiny, and without the consent of the Nigerian people through their elected representatives? We demand to know: under what constitutional provision is this money being spent?
”How did we get here, that the government of Nigeria, even in the face of extant accountability laws, is able to approve expenditure of this magnitude with no public breakdown of costs, no transparent procurement process, and no national debate?, “ the new opposition party queried.
In contrast, the ADC stated that the N712 billion could instead deliver transformative impact by building over seven fully equipped teaching hospitals, funding free basic education across three geopolitical zones for five years, providing rural electrification to thousands of communities, or rehabilitating thousands of kilometres of federal roads and bridges.

”The ADC calls on all Nigerians to reject this frivolous project. We therefore demand its immediate suspension, a full independent audit of the proposed budget, and a redirection of funds toward projects that would directly improve the lives of ordinary citizens, which should be the priority of any government.
”We warn that continued wasteful spending amid widespread hunger, economic hardship, and rising insecurity will only continue to widen the trust deficit between the people and the government. A government that has struggled to justify its need for loans cannot indulge in wasteful spending such as this.  Enough is enough. Let Nigeria work for the many, not just the privileged few,” the statement said.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has thrown light on the federal government’s plan for the infrastructural transformation of the MMIA, Lagos, with the building of a new state-of-the-art terminal, security and perimeter fencing and installation of an advanced security system.
Keyamo gave details and clarifications on the approval of funding from (FEC) and the projects that would be executed in the new development programme, which include the total demolition and rebuilding of the oldest international terminal (Terminal One) at the airport.

“There are two international terminals in Lagos. Terminal One, is that old building directly facing the long stretch of road leading to the airport. It was built and commissioned in 1979 by the Obasanjo-led military regime.
“It has two wings known as Wing D and Wing E. Terminal Two is the new building on the right-hand side as you drive into the airport, started by President Jonathan’s government with a Chinese loan, completed during President Buhari’s government (with the loan) and made operational during President Tinubu’s first one month in office.
“Due to years of neglect and because the traffic over time quadrupled beyond its capacity, the building and facilities at Terminal One became totally decrepit. We have been engaged in some patchy jobs over the years just to make it a bit presentable.
“Now, shorn of all the rhetoric, what we simply want to do is to totally strip down that building, including the entire roof (leaving only the carcass), then re-design/reconfigure it and build a brand-new airport for the nation to meet modern, international standards that can also cater for the increased traffic. Both wings D and E would be affected,” the minister said.
The minister added that the new terminal (Terminal Two) will also be worked on, adding that the government has approved to expand the building and the Apron (where aircraft park for boarding and disembarkation) in order to accommodate more aircraft, including wide-body aircraft.
“That is not all; we are constructing two new independent ring roads in and out of the airport (one for departure and one for arrival) and a bridge that will take travelers directly to the upper floor of Terminal Two Departure lounge, instead of lifting our luggage up the escalators when we are departing. It is a design error we intend to correct,” he explained.
According to him, the administration has introduced smart solutions to the new designs in order to deliver a smart airport to Nigerians that can compete with any airport in the world.
“In all, Nigerians will be proud of what we are going to deliver. And take note, this will not be done by a loan from anywhere, but by the Renewed Hope Infrastructure Development Fund, which is one of the gains made from the removal of subsidies.
“As the work progresses, we will be inviting the press, civil society groups, members of the National Assembly and interested Nigerians on regular tours of the facility to monitor the extent and quality of work. It is part of our national heritage and we should all rightly be interested in the final outcome,” he said.
He encouraged Nigerians to google the cost of most modern airports built around the world in the last few years, including those in Africa like Angola.
Keyamo explained when critics check, they will discover that the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) that scrutinised and fixed the final cost of the project did a fantastic job for the nation.
“And as a final word, it is important to tell Nigerians that we also have brand new terminals in Kano, Abuja and Port-Harcourt. However, presently, they are all underutilised due to the traffic that is less than 30 per cent of their capacities,” Keyamo disclosed.
The minister remarked that by international standards, this amount is reasonable for renovating terminal one, expanding terminal two, and adding road and ramp infrastructure.
Sources that spoke with THISDAY also hailed the project as a long-overdue intervention that could reposition Nigeria as a West African aviation hub. “For too long, our airports have lacked the kind of infrastructure that reflects Nigeria’s status as a major economy. This project marks a turning point,” one source said.
Another anonymous source commended the scope of the rehabilitation, describing it as “the most comprehensive upgrade of Nigeria’s premier airport since it was commissioned.”

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