Governor Dapo Abiodun of Ogun State has said an airport cannot be sited at Wasinmi, Ewekoro Local Government Area of Ogun State.

The Governor mentioned that Wasinmi has the largest cement factories in the country, saying that the cement “factories are emitting dust particles and pollutants into the sky.”

Abiodun explained that his government would resume the construction of an agro-cargo airport abandoned by Former Governor Gbenga Daniel at Ilishan Remo in 2007, ignoring the one he claimed was initiated by his predecessor, Ibikunle Amosun, in Wasinmi.

Abiodun said what the state needed at this time is an agro-cargo airport and not a passenger airport.

According to a statement made available to DAILY POST by the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Kunle Somorin, on Saturday, Abiodun spoke on Friday, when he received the Senate Committee on Aviation, led by Senator Smart Adeyemi, at his office in Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta.

It was said by Abiodun that Amosun had jettisoned the idea of a cargo airport, opting instead, in 2018, for a passenger airport with its proposed location in Wasinmi, Ewekoro area of the state.

However, Governor Abiodun noted that what the state is yearning for is an airport that supports its massive agro development potentials.

Abiodun also told the committee that there were no details or information on the Ewekoro airport project in the handover note of the Amosun’s administration.

According to him, the decision to continue with the Ilishan agro airport project was taken by the state’s joint inter-ministerial committee, which he said had “evaluated and placed priority on it as against the Ewekoro passenger airport.”

Abiodun revealed that a lot of verifiable work had started on the agro-cargo airport project, saying it had the approval of the Ministry of Transportation and the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA).

“Comparatively, on the other proposed airport location, we did not find any details or information in any handover notes as it all seems to be shrouded in secrecy,” Abiodun said of the Wasinmi airport.

He mentioned that a committee led by the National President of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), was commissioned to investigate the Wasinmi airport.

He, however, stated that the committee had found out in its report that there was no approval by the Ministry of Aviation nor the NCAA.

“Besides, it was also found out that while some consultancies were awarded, there were no deliverables,”it alleged.

However, Abiodun informed that his government had redesigned the location of Wasinmi airport to be used as a trailer/container transit terminal and park for cement factories.

But, a member of the committee, Senator Biodun Olujinmi, said the Committee was on a fact-finding mission to Ogun State.

Olujimi assured that the committee would deliberate on its findings on the two projects and come up with a report to be submitted before the National Assembly.

Findings by DAILY POST reveals that the Wasinmi airport was started by the Federal Government in 2005, contrary to claims that it was the idea of his predecessor.

It was gathered that Amosun only prevailed on the Federal Government in 2018 to resume work on the project site.

DailyPost