Re: Ortom, shelve the cargo airport

Daily Trust has carried out its functions  of informing and educating the people about events as they unfold around them over the years. Where we think the paper got it wrong this time is the area of the proposed cargo airport by Benue State government.  In its editorial of 10th November, 2016, it advised the […]

Daily Trust has carried out its functions  of informing and educating the people about events as they unfold around them over the years. Where we think the paper got it wrong this time is the area of the proposed cargo airport by Benue State government.  In its editorial of 10th November, 2016, it advised the government against the project.
It is gratifying to note that the editorial board of Daily Trust newspaper did not completely disagree with the desirability of the project but its grouse is on timing and the need to put in place ancillary infrastructures that could enhance its operations and further deepen the quest for economic revival of the state. We however want to point the newspaper to the efforts by governor Ortom’s government to tackle those needs as enumerated above.
Again will it be good to describe a project which foundation laying ceremony was laid recently as a white elephant one more so when unlike ones that could fall under that category this project in question is collaboration between the private sector and the government with the latter only providing land and conducive environment for the project to thrive? We want to assure Daily Trust and other well-wishers that this project will not suffer such fate; it would be completed in due date and to specification too.
In the thinking of Daily Trust, “Makurdi has an airport which is presently under-utilized.” Nothing can be farther from the truth as Makurdi has no commercial airport that caters for its air transport needs. The only airport that is servicing air transport needs of Benue people has been the Nigeria Air Force airport. As a security facility, there is limit to how the airport can be deployed to meet civilian aviation needs of the people and you cannot fault them for that.
For its suggestion that the government further develop the agriculture sector before thinking of projects like the cargo airport, we want to agree with the newspaper on the need to grow the sector. However, the state government has already taken steps to improve on what it met on ground by already accessing a loan facility of N1bn from Bank of Industry which it is matching with another N1bn for onward disbursement to small and medium scale entrepreneurs in the state. It is the hope of the government that when this money along with loan facility for agriculture sector is deployed, taking part of agriculture produce for sale outside to earn foreign exchange will do the state and its teeming populace a lot of good.

Achiri Igiri-West, Special Assistant to Honourable Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Benue State.