The Federal Government may be considering shutting down the General Aviation Terminal (GAT) of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, following reports that the VIP section of the airport has become a hub for money laundering, drug and human trafficking, among other criminal activities.

The Guardian reports that the GAT is the wing dedicated to private jet owners and other aircraft charter services at the airport. The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, while receiving the report of a seven-member ministerial task force on illegal private charter operations and related matters, said the issue of illegal charter operations by private jets and aircraft owners, who obtain licences under the Permit for Non-Commercial Flight (PNCF), but use the aircraft for illegal transactions had become endemic in the aviation sector.

He said: ?When I resumed office, they said I should let it go because, principally, it was difficult to regulate holders of the Permit for Non-Commercial Flight (PNCF) in the country, as those involved are the untouchables in society. But my background, both from civil society and before I became minister, was as a prosecutor with the EFCC for years. My duty is to touch the untouchable. That is my duty. I was trained to touch the untouchable.?

The minister, while identifying the problem as a national security issue, said the inability of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) to regulate the operations of PNCF holders had led to illegal charter services, saying that since the services could not be tracked, they had facilitated money laundering, drug and human trafficking, and illegal entry and exit into the country.

While commending the efforts of the committee in producing the report and outlining recommendations to tackle the challenge, Keyamo said that the ministry would critically examine the report and its recommendations, stressing that it would not be swept under the carpet. He said: ?If we have to shut down GAT, we will do so, in order to bring some sanity to aircraft charter services in the country.?

The Chairman of the Ministerial Task Force, Captain Ado Sanusi, while presenting the report, identified critical challenges facing illegal charter operations in the country, including regulatory weaknesses, loopholes in the permit for non-commercial flights system, inadequate oversight, security vulnerabilities and significant revenue loss to the Federal Government, amounting to over N120 billion in the last ten years.

Captain Sanusi said their findings showed that the illegal activities not only posed risks to aviation safety but also created an uneven playing field for legitimate operators.

He noted that as highlighted by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), 90 per cent of criminal activities occur at the GAT, including money laundering, fugitive transfers and drug trafficking, all conducted at the GAT, Abuja airport.

The task force, however, suggested that the GAT should immediately be shut down, reorganised, and reopened for business, as pointed out by the ICAO security audit. He said implementing the measures would not only curb illegal activities but also foster a more structured and efficient revenue-generating aviation sector.

In response, the minister said he would submit the report to the Presidency to devise ways to implement the recommendations. He also directed the NCAA to publish the list of legal PNCF holders in newspapers and at airports to curb illegal operators.

According to him, the government is investigating a commercial foreign airline that the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has accused of abetting drug barons in the country. He noted that if commercial airlines could be involved in such criminal activities, private jet owners were even more likely to be. (The Guardian)

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