“One of the swiftest ways of destroying a kingdom is to give preference to one particular tribe over another or show favour to one group of people against another. And to draw near those who should be kept away and keep away those who should be drawn near” – Sheikh Usman Dan Fodio.
I am constrained to write to you this open letter. I decided to make it an open letter because the issue is very weighty and greatly worrisome to all concerned people of Kano. It is on the continuous closure of the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA), which is adversely affecting the economy and livelihood of the people of the state.
The number of passenger movements into the MAKIA, according to the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, from 2015 to date has drastically declined.
The importance of this airport cannot be over emphasized, as the Kano International Airport is the oldest in Nigeria and the first aircraft that landed in Nigeria was in Kano and it became an important fuel stop for airlines flying long-haul services between Europe and Africa.
Recently, Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje made a request to the federal government and your office to open and make the airport fully operational, while non-commissioning of the international wing is not good for the state. Like you said, Kano is your state, but people of Kano never anticipated that under our own brother the international wing would perpetually remain closed.
Anyway, I need not nag too much since there is a passionate appeal from Kano state government and other stakeholders on the abandoning the airport. Bu there is the need to add more voice as people are expressing worry over the continuous closure of the airport while its contemporaries in other parts of Nigeria have resumed operations after the COVID-19 lockdown.
Despite all the goodwill of the people of Kano to the Buhari administration which you are serving it seem this is the reward Kanawa deserve. We never expected seeing MAKIA remain a shadow of its past glory. The general perception is that the administration is working towards nailing the final stage of destroying the airport to a mere domestic airport.
With the present administration in power, we thought Kanawa would have justice from the injustice meted to MAKIA by previous administrations. The federal government should reconsider the re-opening of the airport, in view of its attendant cost on ease of doing business in the state.
Abba Dukawa,
Kano.
