Governor Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom State has said the state is building the biggest airport terminal and Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility in Africa.
The governor spoke during an interview with journalists as he was departing Calabar at the end of his consultation with PDP stakeholders for his presidential aspiration, on Wednesday.
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He said the MRO was about 85 per cent completed and that he was serious about commissioning it by the end of this year.
Gov Emmanuel further said that it was a big shame that many countries in Africa did not have functional airlines, thereby depending mostly on Ethiopian and Rwandan airlines.
He said, “It is also shameful that a particular country in West Africa needed to do an overhaul of its aircraft which was paid for by the USA.
“Many countries and their leaders have to depend on commercial aircraft. We took on this challenge and established Ibom Air which is now dominating the skies, and we intend to fly to countries in Africa.
“We have decided to go the extra mile and established the MRO and airport terminal. It will be the biggest, smartest and best of it all in Africa.”