Lockdown ease: FG not in hurry to reopen airports

The Minister of Environment, Mahmood Abubakar, has said that Federal Government is not in a hurry to re-open airports in the country.

He made this known on Wednesday, during a briefing by the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 in Abuja.

The Minister said the sector is such a specialised one because of its high safety standards.

He said decontamination and disinfection have been completed on two out of the 125 aircraft earlier announced while the process is ongoing at the 13 airports mapped out across the country.

Mahmood said, “Decontamination and disinfection specifically as it affect the aviation sector. The aviation sector is such a specialised sector and that is why we are not rushing things.

“Last week, I did say we mapped out 125 aircraft and 13 airports. So far, we have decontaminated and disinfected two aircraft.

“Why we are not rushing it is because of the nature of their industry, it is such a place with a (high) system of safety, so every standard must be followed carefully.

“We even have to follow their lead on how to go about decontaminating and disinfecting the aircraft and the airports.

“It’s ongoing because there are other facilities that we are decontaminating at the same time all across the country, so we go as they are ready for us.”

Airports in the country had been closed for commercial operations since March as part of efforts to curb the importation and spread of the coronavirus pandemic.