The Managing Director of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, Olubunmi Kuku, has addressed criticism surrounding her assertion that N580 billion is needed to overhaul obsolete runways across the country.
She expressed her readiness to step down from her role if she feels her efforts are no longer effective.
Kuku made this declaration during an interview on Television Continental on Thursday evening, where she discussed various challenges and developments in the aviation sector.
Acknowledging that her position has required bold decisions, Kuku admitted to stepping on toes and said she is prepared to continue doing so, albeit with caution.
She stated, “If I am tired, I will get out of the job. I have stepped on toes and I am still stepping on toes and I know that I need to do that with caution but definitely not at the jeopardy of the airport system. If I have to, I will step down, I will resign if I see that it is not working, but what is important is to make sure that I do what is right.”
Kuku also responded to criticism regarding her claim that N580 billion is required to refurbish outdated runways nationwide.
She defended the estimate, calling on skeptics to investigate the costs associated with maintaining aviation infrastructure.
“I would like to clarify two things,” she explained. “First, we have a number of runways in Nigeria today. We have mentioned to you that there are 22 airports that are owned by the Federal Government, and we also support some that are state-owned. I also made specific reference to airports with runways that have exceeded their lifespan. The average lifespan of a runway is about 20-25 years, and a lot of our runways in Nigeria have actually exceeded that time, meaning that we had them for 30 to over 35 years.
“What it means is that we have to reconstruct those runways. The N580bn that I initially mentioned was for over 17 runways and it is not just runways but also includes some perimeter fencing and so on. I have seen commentaries where people asked what we would be needing those monies for. Just look it up in Google to understand what it means to build runways, taxi expansion, and all that is needed to be done.”
Reflecting on her first 100 days in office, Kuku highlighted improvements in the operational environment of Nigeria’s airports.
She emphasized the restoration of order and cleanliness in aerodromes, which she considers a key achievement.
“We have spent too much time talking about the decay, and it is time for us to start fixing things, and that is exactly what we are doing. And what is more critical is the continuity, meaning that wherever we stop, somebody needs to pick that up, and that is the biggest challenge that we see. Because we have a new administration, we tend not to complete or continue old projects.
“Now to what we are doing; I think what to do is to block some immediate gaps, which is what we have done. If you have been a traveller in the last 90 days, you will observe that the airports are cleaner and more friendly in terms of the atmosphere,” she added.
