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Tinubu Suspends Cashless Payment System At Airport Toll Gates Nationwide
President Bola Tinubu has suspended the cashless payment system at airport toll gates nationwide following widespread gridlock that caused many passengers to miss their flights.
Festus Keyamo, Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, announced the suspension on Wednesday after the Federal Executive Council meeting at the State House in Abuja.
He said that the President directed an immediate return to the previous system while a more efficient alternative is developed.
“Mr. President was very concerned about the welfare of Nigerians and the fact that most Nigerians were losing their flights, missing their flights.
“So Mr. President, out of empathy, directed today that we should suspend the present system because it creates a lot of gridlock, and Nigerians are suffering as a result of it.
“The major reason why Mr. President took this decision is to eliminate the present gridlock that we are experiencing, especially at both the Lagos and Abuja toll gates leading to the airport.
“That’s the major reason, not that the President is happy with the cash system,” the minister clarified.
The cashless system was introduced less than a week ago.
For over 50 years, FAAN had collected cash from motorists at toll gates, parking areas, and other payment points at airports across the country.
However, the transition to a fully cashless system led to severe traffic congestion on airport access roads, with passengers reporting hours-long delays and missed flights.
Keyamo disclosed that President Tinubu had directed the ministry to return to the drawing board and refine the system.
“In fact, the President directed me that this should not take too long. It should not take too long, and I should get back to him on this issue.
“We should go back and, if possible, even engage the private sector to ensure that we establish an electronic system by which we can collect these revenues for the federal government at the gates, to the extent that it will not create the gridlock that we are having right now,” the Minister said.
He announced that a temporary hybrid system would be introduced, allowing both cash payments and the use of FAAN prepaid cards already purchased by some motorists.
The Minister further revealed that the government would engage private sector participants to develop a more efficient payment system that eliminates cash at the gates without triggering traffic congestion.
“Mr. President said if we have to pay commission, we have to pay commission, but we’ll bring in private sector participants to help us devise a much more efficient payment system that will still eliminate cash at the gate,” he stated.
The suspended cashless system required motorists to obtain prepaid cards or use electronic payment platforms before accessing airport toll gates. However, its rollout created bottlenecks as many users struggled to navigate the new payment methods.
Airport users took to social media to complain about spending hours in traffic while attempting to access terminals, with some sharing videos of gridlock stretching several kilometres from toll gates.
Airports in Lagos and Abuja, which handle the highest passenger traffic in the country, were particularly affected, prompting travellers to arrive several hours earlier than usual to avoid missing their flights.
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