The Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Oladayo Amao, has restated the determination of the federal government to secure and curtail insecurity in every part of Nigeria.
He said part of the strategies to meet the increasing demands of security challenges in the country, is to establish new NAF bases at strategic locations.
This is just as Ekiti State governor Biodun Oyebanji said the decision to have an airport in the state was primarily for economic, security and tourism development.
The duo spoke yesterday at a historic turning of the sod for the construction of the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) Operational Base in Ekiti State.
Governor Oyebanji said the event was in fulfilment of the government’s strategic vision of expanding security architecture and air military presence in the state.
“It will be recalled that one of the reasons we opted for this airport, which is situated on 4072 hectares of land with the capacity to land any aircraft including military, is to secure our people,” he added.
Amao said the proposed NAF Base in Ekiti will provide operational support services to Nigerian Air Force platforms operating in the South-West geo-political zone.
The security chief who noted that the event also signifies the official handing and taking-over of the 1,257 hectares of land allocated by the Ekiti State Government to the NAF for the construction of the operational base sited close to the State International Agro-Allied Airport, said it was established to boost security in the state.
“As we are all aware, security is a veritable condition necessary for development, as no economy can thrive in an insecure or unstable environment. It is also common knowledge that almost every geopolitical zone in our country today is faced with one form of security challenge or the other, including terrorism, insurgency, armed banditry, kidnapping and others.
“The Nigerian Air Force has been employing airpower in support of the overall efforts to tackle these security situations facing our dear country.
“The co-location of the new base with the newly built state airport will help enhance the security of this critical infrastructure and boost the confidence of travellers, as well as the airport and airspace users.
“Personnel that would be deployed to the Base will also contribute to the security architecture of Ekiti State and particularly to airport security, amongst other functions. This will positively impact the Nigerian Air Force’s readiness and responsiveness to security challenges in the State and adjoining states where there is currently no air force presence,” he said.
According to the governor, “As a landlocked state, we need to open and connect our economy to the rest of the world. As an agrarian economy, one of the ways to expand our economy is to find a way to connect our farm produce to the international market and to develop new frontiers of economic opportunities.
“We want to create an aviation economy where aviation- related services: such as Aircraft Maintenance, Repair and Operation (MRO), Aviation Hospital, Aviation Training, Cargo Handling, and Tourism Marketing, among others, are provided in the near future.
“We understand that without aviation and security infrastructure, our ambition to grow our tourism infrastructure and prosperity agenda will remain a pipe dream.
“To make Ekiti the ultimate medical tourism destination in West Africa and we also know that we need a military base in the state to further strengthen our security mix and to ensure that our environment is secure.”
Oyebanji urged the people of the host communities to be protective, cooperative, and hospitable to the construction workers and the military personnel.
