The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has launched an armed Aviation Security (AVSEC) unit at Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos to combat touting and illegal activities.
Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, announced the launch on his X page.
He stated that the new unit is mandated to arrest and prosecute touts and other suspected criminals operating within airport premises.
Keyamo emphasized that this initiative aims to ensure a safer and more secure environment for passengers and airport users.
He also mentioned plans to replicate the unit at other international airports across the country.
“As part of the steps we earlier promised Nigerians to take to curb the menace of touting and other illegal activities around our airports, earlier today the Managing Director of FAAN, on my behalf, unveiled the armed Aviation Security (AVSEC) unit at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos.
We will replicate it at other international airports.
They have the mandate to arrest and prosecute touts and other suspected criminals around our airports,” Keyamo wrote.
“This is apart from the other inter-ministerial effort that is still ongoing to deal specifically with the issue of agencies of government within the airports that are involved in extortion, bribery, and begging,” he added.
This move follows Keyamo’s June 23 statement acknowledging that the issue of extortion of passengers by officials at the nation’s airports was beyond the ministry’s control.
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