President General, Urhobo Progress Union (UPU), Chief Joe Omene condemned the idea to concession the Asaba International Airport by Delta State government, insisting that Governor Ifeanyi Okowa has erred again.
On Tuesday, the Delta State government signed off the Asaba Airport facility to concessionaires in a deal that will earn the state, at least, N100 million in concession fees yearly.
The strategic move to further develop the airport and make it run profitably (the first of such concession in the country), would also earn the state 2.5 per cent yearly revenue earnings over the next 30 years that the concession agreement would run.
However Omene on Wednesday condemned the idea adding that what the governor has done clearly shows he came to the office with a different agenda.
Hear him: “If others are acting like that, there won’t be anything to pass to our children or the coming generation of Deltans, This airport was built with over 30 billion of taxpayers money and now you are giving it out for the next 30 years for 3 billion.
“It does not add up and I am still finding it hard that this is true. We expected the Governor to leave behind a legacy of industrializing the state, not selling off or leasing out our pride.
Omene also said the proposed University of Education at Agbor was now a full-fledged university, that the Governor was not sincere in his approach to the development of Deltans, saying, it’s a shame that an airport that gulped over N30 billion is now being downgraded.
“Who is responsible for the downgrading? How will you say an airport that over 30 billion naira was spent on, was not up to the required standard. The Governor should know that we are watching, his Ika agenda, not Delta agenda will not work”.
But the state government has reiterated that the airport was not sold neither is the government playing politics with the airport.
