Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi, has jokingly asked the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, to pay landing, parking and take-off charges to the Federal Ministry of Works after a private jet reportedly landed on a road under construction in Delta State.
Umahi made the light-hearted remark while leading a delegation from the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID) on an inspection tour of the ongoing Abakaliki-Afikpo-Ndibe Beach Trans-Sahara Highway project.
Reacting to reports that a private aircraft mistakenly landed on the concrete pavement of a federal road under construction at Ogwashi-Ukwu, Delta State, the minister said he could understand why the pilot mistook the road for an airport runway.
“I was watching Arise TV this morning and saw where they were talking about the plane that landed on the road we are constructing at Ogwashi-Ukwu in Delta State,” Umahi said.
“I don’t blame them or the pilot for mistaking our concrete roads for runways. But I want to tell my brother, the Honourable Minister of Aviation, to pay us landing, parking and take-off costs for using our road as a runway.”
The minister attributed the incident to the high quality of roads being constructed by the Federal Government under President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
“It is not our fault, neither is it President Bola Tinubu’s fault, that we are building roads that are stronger than some runways,” he joked.
“But we want to tell them not to land on our roads again because if they do, they will pay us landing and take-off charges.”
Speaking on the Abakaliki-Afikpo-Ndibe Beach Trans-Sahara Highway, Umahi described the project as one of the flagship legacy projects of the Tinubu administration aimed at improving transportation and unlocking economic opportunities across Nigeria and beyond.
According to him, the highway, which links Ebonyi and Cross River states through Ndibe Beach in Afikpo and extends towards Benue and Kogi states, will boost trade, improve connectivity and stimulate economic growth within Nigeria and neighbouring Cameroon.
He said the project aligns with the Renewed Hope Agenda’s vision of using critical infrastructure to drive national development and regional integration.
Leader of the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development delegation, Mainouna Sidibe, expressed satisfaction with the pace and quality of infrastructure development across Nigeria.
Sidibe commended the Federal Government’s road development initiatives and pledged the bank’s support for projects capable of boosting economic growth and strengthening integration among ECOWAS member states.
She noted that improved transport infrastructure remains critical to facilitating trade, investment and regional cooperation across West Africa.
