The management of Port Harcourt International Airport said it had concluded plans to relocate concessionaires and other mini-businesses from the operational areas of the domestic wing.

Ngozi Onyeanwunna-Nwosu, the public relations officer of the airport, disclosed this to journalists in Port Harcourt on Wednesday.

She said that un-regularised business activities within the operational areas were fast breeding shanties at the facility, hence the need for a robust facelift.

According to her, the relocation is to give a facelift to the airport environment, but not an alleged displacement of thriving businesses, as widely speculated by some individuals who do not want to embrace change.

“Though the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) reserves the right to make policies that will enhance its operations, it has always prioritised public interest in all its implementation,” she said.

The airport spokesperson explained that the relocation was part of management’s efforts to enhance serenity, security and standards within operational areas.

She noted that the airport authority duly notified all affected business operators about the planned relocation since November 2023.

“We actually relocated them to a better place because FAAN always operates with a human face.

“We also care about businesses within the airport, so we request affected operators to go there and pick up their shop spaces.

“We also gave them a deadline that expires in March, so how have we wronged them,” she said.

Meanwhile, some of the affected operators said that the distance from their target customers, mostly passengers and acquaintances, will undermine smooth business activities at the proposed new site.

Mark Tammy, a food vendor at the airport, said that many of his customers would find it difficult to patronise him at the proposed site because the new place was far from the domestic waiting area.

“Business thrives when customers who wait for clients stop over to patronise us; relocating away from a strategic position will slow down business patronage,” he said.

Also, Janette Ikem, a computer operator at the premises, said that the relocation would further aggravate hardships for affected individuals, considering the present state of the country’s economy.

“Things are very difficult now; how will you want us to relocate to that distance without makeshift stalls? This means that they are indirectly forcing us to build new stalls for ourselves,” she said.

All shanties around the cargo and other areas within the airport had remained sealed from trespassers.

(NAN)