By Dr. Gbenga Adeoye
All over the world, pick up and drop off points are common places at both local and International Airports.
Having your car parked at the Airport is to enable you to arrive early and wait for the flight to land and as soon as your passenger arrives, you drive to the pick up area to pick the person who is already waiting.
Even when you book Uber anywhere in the world, such cars will pick you at the designated pick up points.
Some Airports have different levels of pick up areas depending on Airlines.
That you can find at Chicago and some other notable Airports with three level arrival points.
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To my surprise, I found disturbing signs at the MM2 drop off and pick up area in Lagos and I kept wondering for hours whether it was a dream or real .
“Drop Off Only.No Pick Up”.
Honestly, I first read it to mean, Pick Up and drop off only.
Then I investigated as fast as I could to know what was going on and see what I found.
- NON state actors have turned Nigeria to a Lawless Country where people just wake up and do what they like.
2.I saw some merciless thugs (so to say) holding some iron with about 15 nails on a flat portion to place right in front of your tyres if found to attempt to pick up a passenger and there you get arrested and if you move, the nails will destroy your tyre.
3.The aim is not to stop you from making the attempt but to arrest you and of course make you pay a penalty…Hence the yellow signs are actually to say can’t you see the signs.Nonsense.
- To my shock, the VIP pick up areas are exempted from this new rule and draconian policy at MM2. How can you do so to a few citizens and leave the majority of your people in pain?
- The aim of this policy is to increase the revenue at the car park which is from N500 upward. What a selfish policy?
- The elevator that can take you to level two car parks is not even sufficient for passengers that are coming in.
- The elevator is not even positioned for people to know as they arrive.
- Notwithstanding any excuse that can be given by the owners of MM2; such policy is alien to the aviation industry and International Best Practice.
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10.I drove to the car Park to see it for myself. Oh….The policy is working so well. Meaning that, you will be creating heavy traffic for Lagosians around Ikeja as everybody will first of all have to drive in and park first; when people actually need to drive from their houses and just come to a pick up point.
So many lawless policies and shameless actions from non State actors in my country.
I saw people who didn’t use the elevator or probably parked at level 1 dragging their bags with pains to cross to the other side when their cars were parked waiting for them.
MY COUNSEL.
- Enforce no parking any waiting except drop off and pick up only. This is the normal thing to do.
- Let the car parks be used by those willing to wait and rest before their passenger’s arrival.
- Do not set two rules for people in the same country. (How can you allow VIP to continue to enjoy the pick up right..(Yes it is actually a right to pick up at arrival anywhere in the world) and disallow others The VIP’s are even the employees of the Citizens. What Nonsense is that? How can we live in a Country like that? Those who break traffic rules the most are the VIP’s. I see people drive on one way and the law enforcement officers that ought to arrest anyone who does that will be the one to clear the ways. What is that nonsense in our country?
Is that Buhari or Osinbajo again? No. We the people.
We need to change this nonsense way of life.
- The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority and all agencies of government in charge of our Aviation business should stop this nonsense, barbaric and draconian policy at MM2 immediately without any delay.
- Finally, let us run a country where there is rule of law and orderliness, not just one man waking up to make life difficult for us as people just to make money at the expense of Nigerians.
Imagine a country where Business men and women cannot move goods freely on the road…Road Safety people, VIO and others will stop their vehicles and delay them over some unreasonable policies as if we live alone in the world and we do not want to follow the pattern of International Best Practice on Ease of doing business.
Government should ensure that citizen’s welfare comes first in any law or policy they make.
Dr. Gbenga Adeoye holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Law.( LLB), MSc. in Banking & Finance and a PhD in Management Accounting. He also holds a Diploma in Criminology and Security studies.
He is a Fellow of The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (FCA), a Fellow of The Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria (FCTI) & an Arbitrator of UK and Nigeria.