The Federal Government on Sunday inaugurated the N40 billion Close Circuit Television Camera (CCTV) Centre of the Third Mainland Bridge in Lagos State.

The CCTV centre was built by the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC).

Inaugurating the centre, the Minister of Works, Sen.

Dave Umahi, said that the current administration met a ‘very terrible Third Mainland Bridge’.

‎”When we came on board in 2023, we met a very terrible Third Mainland Bridge, Carter Bridge and Iddo Bridge both on the pavement, surface, infrastructure above the water and even infrastructure below the water.

‎”The president, therefore, directed total re-evaluation and rehabilitation of the surfaces of the Third Mainland Bridge and changing the expansion joints.

‎”Lagosians were very happy with the President for that beautiful work, and that work completed and commissioned is still succeeding because of the quality,” he said.

He said the ministry would be handing over a boat and two Hilux vans, which were part of the contract, to the police for monitoring of the bridge.

“If they need to incorporate other security agencies, they can do that, but the idea of this project is that we have a lay-by on the bridge, so we view everything going on this bridge.”

Umahi expressed worry at speeding by motorists on the bridge, urging adherence to traffic rules and regulations.

Earlier, the Federal Controller of Works in Lagos, Olufemi Dare, said that the centre was the first of its kind in Nigeria.

‎”I doubt if there is any bridge in Nigeria that has what we have deployed here today, where you have CCTV to monitor both the underwater and even the bridge itself.

”We have a boat that has been bought for surveillance of the bridge. There are two Hilux vans, too.

”We have 240 solar panels in this environment, and that is not enough.  The whole place is fully air-conditioned. We have 10 inverters inside the building.

‎”We have the power units. We have a transformer, a 300KVA transformer. We have a standby generating plant and monitoring screens,” he said.

He expressed gratitude to President Bola Tinubu for the provision and   thanked Umahi for ensuring that due process was followed in establishing the centre.

‎”We have about 1268 solar street lights that are part of this contract,” he said.

He added that a bore was part of the project.

Dare said that the project’s contract sum was 40.17 billion.

He said that the Federal Government had paid N36 billion to the contractor handling the project.

“This is the first level of commissioning. We are still going to come back here to do even for the extension of the bridge which is about to be completed.

‎”We pray that very sooner than later, we will come back to do a full-blown commissioning.”

The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority has signalled plans to introduce tougher sanctions against domestic airlines over repeated flight delays and poor passenger handling, warning that recurrent inefficiencies will no longer be tolerated in the sector.

This was announced on Thursday via the official X handle of the NCAA’s Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, Michael Achimugu.

He said, “We will be pushing for stiffer penalties against domestic airlines for chronic delays.

We have protected operators, stood for them, explained for them, been insulted for them, and supported them because it is the right thing to do.

“The majority of flight disruptions are not caused by the airlines, but recent events justify the need for heavier ramifications where there is recurrent inefficiency.

”

He noted that the level of support extended to airline operators by the current administration and aviation authorities should reasonably translate into improved service delivery.

He said, “The natural law of nature is that when an industry is supported by government in the way that His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has done; in the way that the Honourable Minister of Aviation, Festus Keyamo, SAN has done; in the way that the DGCA, Capt. Chris Najomo has done, in the way that our Consumer Protection Department has done, the least expectation of reciprocity is for remarkable improvements to reflect in flight operations and some other aspects.”

While acknowledging the challenging operating environment faced by airlines, he insisted that certain lapses could no longer be excused. Achimugu stated, “One understands, and has reiterated the challenging operating environment that operators have to meander in an industry that is starting to improve in terms of policies driven by the Honourable Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development (read the CTC Practice Direction, IDERA, Consumer Protection awareness, etc), but there are some lapses that are inexcusable.”

He emphasised persistent failures in communication with passengers during disruptions, noting that this had worsened tensions at airports.

“Immeasurable times, I have stressed the need for airlines to improve communication during flight delays and cancellations. I have stressed the need to comply with the regulations in the areas of HOTAC and First Needs Compensation,” he said.

According to him, mishandled passenger information has fuelled many of the confrontations seen at terminals. “The failure to manage information properly, as well as poor passenger handling, has been responsible for the majority of passenger violence at our airport terminals.”

Citing international precedent, he pointed to a recent sanction in the United States, saying, “Not too long ago, the US authorities fined JetBlue airline to the tune of two million dollars for ‘chronic delayed flights,’ the first of its kind in the US.”

He added that regulations may need to evolve in response to emerging challenges. “Regulations may evolve as challenges take expression and impact the industry.”

Reassuring both passengers and operators, Achimugu maintained that the NCAA remained committed to fairness and accountability in the aviation sector. “The NCAA is committed to protecting the rights of all stakeholders, and a review that strengthens the Authority to enforce compliance for both passengers and operators has to be done.”

The move comes against the backdrop of growing passenger complaints over widespread delays in the country’s aviation sector.

The NCAA said domestic airlines operated 17,731 flights between July and September 2025, up from 15,989 flights in the same period of 2024. Total cancellations fell sharply to 80 flights in the third quarter of 2025, compared with 251 cancellations recorded a year earlier.

In April 2025, Air Peace temporarily suspended flight operations following a strike by Nigeria Meteorological Agency staff, affecting departures at major airports, including Lagos and Abuja, and leaving passengers stranded for hours.

In May 2025, passengers reported multiple delays on Max Air flights, with several flights out of Kaduna and Kano rescheduled late into the night without clear communication, sparking complaints on social media.

In June 2025, United Nigeria Airlines faced backlash after a flight from Lagos to Abuja was delayed by more than 10 hours, with many customers saying they received no official updates from the carrier during the wait.

The Niger Governor’s Wife, Hajiya Fatima Bago, has lauded the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) for its sustained efforts in enhancing the quality of locally-manufactured goods in the state.

Bago made the commendation when she received a delegation from SON, led by the agency’s State Coordinator, Hajiya Hauwa Nuhu, which paid a visit to her office at the Government House, Minna, on Wednesday.

She said that the organisation’s interventions had significantly enhanced product certification and standardisation among local entrepreneurs.

She recalled a programme organised by a commercial bank for entrepreneurs shortly after her assumption of office, where various locally-made products were showcased.

The governor’s wife said there was remarkable improvement in product certification over the past few years, with even small-scale products now meeting required standards.

“Today, even products such as zobo are certified.

“This is a great achievement and I urge entrepreneurs to continue to uphold product standards for the safety of our health,” she said.

She expressed readiness to push for the State Government to strengthen collaboration with SON to further boost local production in the state, saying her office remained open for support.

Earlier, Nuhu said that the visit was to commiserate with the State Government and its people over the recent spate of kidnappings, describing the incidents as distressing to Nigerians.

“We were very prayerful. Since the incident started, we joined the governor to pray for their release.

“We were emotionally distressed, but we are happy the children are back home,” she said.

Nuhu further said that the visit was also to appreciate the governor’s wife for her “doggedness, resilience and motherly role during the period”, and to brief her on SON’s activities in the state.

She said that SON’s core mandate is to ensure quality assurance and standardisation of products and services, as well as enforce compliance with approved standards.

“Our work is broad. We check the quality of products and services, elaborate standards and enforce their use.

“That is why we have the Mandatory Conformity Assessment Programme and the SON Conformity Assessment Programme,” she said.

Nuhu also said that SON had made a significant impact on entrepreneurship, particularly among micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and certified more than 300 locally produced MSME products in the state.

“Some of these entrepreneurs, because of the visibility we give them, now have products competing in the international market,” she said.

She disclosed that SON had issued marks of quality to locally produced goods, adding that three products from Niger had gained international competitiveness and received SME awards.