By Daily Topic
The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Mr Festus Keyamo (SAN), has said that the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) spent close to N1 billion in 2023 on DTA (Duty Tour Allowance) for the principal officers who travelled back and forth from Lagos to Abuja almost daily.
The minister while speaking on Channels Politics Today on Wednesday, said there was no going back on the planned move of the FAAN corporate headquarters from Abuja to Lagos.
Keyamo asserted that over 100 staff members of FAAN operated from Lagos, with a handful, consisting of top directors, in Abuja. He noted that the call for the relocation of the agency to Lagos predated his appointment as aviation minister.
He explained that the headquarters of an organisation did not necessarily mean the largest building or place with the highest number of staff. He said it was, rather, where “the decision makers sit”, stating that “they are all in Lagos, they are not really in Abuja.”
Keyamo said leaders of the agency had approached him on the assumption of office to address their challenges.
He said, “They came to me to say some of the directors are here, but the support staff don’t have a place to stay; you see them fly every day to and from Lagos to Abuja”.
However, Keyamo on Thursday on his X handle stated that he had not been briefed before the Wednesday interview on the amount FAAN spent in 2023 alone on DTA for the principal officers who travelled back and forth from Lagos to Abuja almost daily.
He explained that the amount came up to N493,678,620.37, aside from the air tickets which he said amounted to N451,058,950.09. This amounts to about N945 million.
He said, “When I did my Channels TV interview yesterday, I had not been briefed as to the amount FAAN spent last year alone on DTA (Duty Tour Allowance) for the principal officers who travelled back and forth from Lagos to Abuja almost on a daily basis.
“The amount came up to N493,678,620.37. This is aside from the air tickets which I mentioned that amounted to N451, 058,950.09.
“So, in total, because of insistence on naming Abuja as the headquarters of FAAN (when there are no offices in Abuja to accommodate all the principal officers) FAAN spent close to N1 billion in one year!”
