Activities at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) in Lagos were disrupted yesterday following a protest by visually impaired persons over the closure of their training school.
The demonstrators, carrying the banner of the institution– Farmcraft Centre for the Blind– and placards, blocked major roads to both the domestic and international wings of the airport.
Hundreds of air travellers, aviation workers, motorists and commuters heading to different parts of the Lagos metropolis via the routes were caught in gridlock that began at about 10.45 am.
Some of the air travellers were seen by The Nation hopping onto commercial motorcycles whose operators charged as much as N5,000 from the tollgate near the international wing to the domestic terminals to meet their flights.
The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) and Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Ltd, operator of Terminal Two (MMA2) of the airport, apologised to those who experienced inconveniences and flight schedule disruptions.
FAAN and Bi-Courtney went a step further to advise them to ‘’seek alternative routes, confirm flight schedules with airlines and remain patient.’’
The protesters, led by Kelly Egbere (aka Kelly Blind), said they were angry that the government had been lax in reopening the school, which has branches in parts of Lagos state, since it was shut on June 7 last year.
They vowed to continue the protest till the government provided a concrete response on the school’s reopening.
