President Bola Tinubu has suspended the cashless payment system recently introduced by the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), following traffic congestion at airport gates nationwide.
The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, announced while briefing State House correspondents after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) held at the State House Presidential Villa, Abuja, on Wednesday.
“Mr President was very concerned about the welfare of Nigerians and the fact that most Nigerians were losing their flights, missing their flights. So Mr President, out of empathy, directed today that we should suspend the present system because it creates a lot of gridlock, and Nigerians are suffering as a result of it,” Mr Keyamo said.
He said the major reason Mr Tinubu took this decision is to eliminate the present gridlock that Nigerians are experiencing, especially at both the Lagos and Abuja toll gates leading to the airport.
“That’s the major reason, not that the President is happy with the cash system,” he said.
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FAAN launched its ‘Go Cashless’ policy on March 1, aiming to digitise payments at airport access gates, parking, lounges, and other points. However, the rollout has been marred by long queues and delays, causing frustration for travellers.
While the aim is to modernise airport operations and reduce revenue leakages, many have criticised the implementation, citing poor planning and inadequate infrastructure.
Speaking further, Mr Keyamo said Mr Tinubu has directed the ministry to return to the drawing board and perfect the system.
“In fact, the President directed me that this should not take too long. It should not take too long, and I should get back to him on this issue. We should go back and, if possible, even engage the private sector to ensure that we establish an electronic system by which we can collect these revenues for the federal government at the gates, to the extent that it will not create the gridlock that we are having right now.
“We are going to do a hybrid system whereby we can collect cash temporarily and, of course, use the cards that they have collected temporarily for now,” he said.
