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The Minister for Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo has shared an internal finance secret that nothing less than N1 billion has been spent on traveling fees for airport officers.
Keyamo gave the revelation on Thursday while noting that the Nigerian Government allocates a staggering N1 billion annually for Duty Tour Allowance (DTA) and air tickets for officers of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) shuttling between Abuja and Lagos.
It should be noted that the aviation minister had made a comment on Channels Television that N500 million was spent annually but he returned today to retract his statement.
According to him, FAAN workers incurred expenses of N493,678,620.37 for DTA and N451,058,950.09 for air tickets in 2023 alone.
“When I did my Channels TV interview yesterday, I was not briefed about the amount FAAN spent last year alone on DTA (Duty Tour Allowance) for the principal officers who travelled back and forth from Lagos to Abuja almost daily.
“The amount came up to N493,678,620.37. Aside from the air tickets, which I mentioned amounted to N451,058,950.09.
“So, in total, because of insistence on naming Abuja as the headquarters of FAAN (when there are no offices in Abuja to accommodate all the principal officers), FAAN spent close to N1 billion in one year,” Keyamo emphasized.
Despite opposition from certain quarters, the minister reiterated the Federal Government's decision to relocate the FAAN headquarters from Abuja to Lagos. He had initially announced this decision on January 19th, 2023. The move aims to address operational inefficiencies and streamline resources, with the minister standing firm on the relocation despite opposition.
Would Nigeria incur more expenses in the aviation sector in the year 2024 or would the status quo be maintained?
