The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria has ejected Bash Fast Towing Company from the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, after a complaint alleged the firm was collecting irregular ₦25,000 parking penalties from motorists using channels outside FAAN's official payment systems.
The action was disclosed by Michael Achimugu, Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection at the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, who said the complaint had been escalated to FAAN Managing Director Olubunmi Kuku, and that she ordered the company's immediate removal from the airport once the allegations were reviewed.
What the Complaint Alleged
The matter was first raised by a social media user who said enforcement personnel had clamped vehicles belonging to motorists who stopped briefly in restricted pick-up and drop-off zones, before directing them to a site office to pay a ₦25,000 penalty. According to the complaint, motorists who asked to pay into the account officially displayed at the office were told confirmation could take hours or days, and some were instead directed to point-of-sale operators or personal accounts linked to fintech platforms rather than any verified FAAN or agency channel. The complainant also alleged that even proof of payment did not always result in prompt release of the clamped vehicle. FAAN has not publicly named the specific amounts collected through the disputed channels.
Part of a Wider Push on Airport Commercial Operators
The parking dispute follows a series of moves by FAAN this month to tighten oversight of commercial operators at Nigerian airports. Days earlier, on 20 August, the authority said it was developing a new operational framework for Uber, Bolt, and other e-hailing services at Nigerian airports, addressing passenger safety, accountability, and orderly pick-up arrangements, while clarifying that its own Airport Car Hire Rank Management System is a tracking and compliance tool rather than a competing ride-hailing app. FAAN said it was working to engage a replacement operator for the parking enforcement contract at Abuja and advised motorists to continue complying with official parking instructions in the interim.
