The Managing Director, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, Olubunmi Kuku, has described the Federal Government’s directive to pause the full rollout of the cashless tollgate system at airports as a positive step that will allow authorities refine the process and improve user experience.
Speaking with newsmen in Lagos after the decision announced following a meeting of the Federal Executive Council, Mrs. Kuku explained that the initiative was originally introduced in line with a federal directive aimed at modernising toll payments and blocking revenue leakages.
She noted that extensive public awareness had begun months earlier, with support from the National Orientation Agency, but acknowledged that the strict implementation deadline created operational challenges, particularly heavy traffic around airport tollgates.
According to her, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu intervened after observing the gridlock caused during the rollout, directing the aviation authorities to temporarily revert to a hybrid payment system that allows both electronic and cash transactions while improvements are made.
She said the directive reflects the government’s willingness to adapt policies to local realities and avoid disruptions that could cause passengers to miss flights.
The MD FAAN revealed that despite the challenges, the digital system itself performed successfully, recording about 100,000 registered users with roughly 60,000 enrolments within the final days before enforcement.
She added that about 99 percent of deployed cashless cards worked effectively, but the location of tollgates and the high number of non-airport commuters using airport roads contributed significantly to congestion, especially in Lagos.
The FAAN boss said the additional time granted by the government would be used to expand user registration, strengthen public awareness, engage private sector partners and fine-tune the technology before a full transition is reconsidered.
She assured that even with the temporary return to cash payments, mechanisms would be strengthened to reduce revenue leakages while the authority continues testing the system and preparing for a more seamless rollout in the future.
Reporting By Nosa Aituamen