The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Mr. Festus Keyamo (SAN), has said that private jets, including that of Bishop David Oyedepo, the founder of Living Faith Bible Church Worldwide, cannot leave the country directly from their private airstrips without obtaining clearance from relevant authorities.
Keyamo made the clarification on Channels Television’s “Politics Today,” anchored by Seun Okinbaloye and monitored by Persecondnews.
Keyamo’s statement comes two months after the House of Representatives called for the revocation of airstrip licenses issued to certain individuals and private organizations, citing security concerns.
The House also sought an immediate halt to new airstrip licenses for individuals and organizations.
Keyamo emphasized that no aircraft or drone, including military-owned ones, can enter or leave Nigeria without obtaining clearance from the relevant agency.
He confirmed that Oyedepo’s airstrip also underwent the same rigorous due process.
He said, “Oh yes, absolutely. That’s no problem. They were only concerned about the fact that they thought that somebody could take off from a private airstrip and fly out of Nigeria or fly into Nigeria. It is not possible.
“You must land in an international airport first. Then the customs, immigration, and NDLEA will process you before you take off from there to your private airstrip.
“If you are also flying out, you must land at an international airport. You will go through customs, immigration, and all the normal processes before flying out.
“So nobody uses an airstrip for any such purpose without seeking clearance. At every point in time, the authorities must approve.”
Keyamo disclosed that Nigeria currently operates about 40 airstrips.
He said: “We have a number of them, more than 40. For the federal airport, we have 23. The state airport has about eight or nine, and then the airstrips are about 40 or thereabouts. I have been there myself.”
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