President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has directed the immediate suspension of the newly introduced cashless toll gate system at airports across Nigeria after widespread complaints from passengers and motorists being stranded due to heavy congestion at airport entrances nationwide
The policy, which took effect on March 1, 2026, prohibited cash payments at airport toll gates and required motorists to use prepaid access cards or electronic payment platforms.
Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, disclosed that the President has instructed the ministry to return to the drawing board and refine the implementation process.
According to Keyamo, the President emphasized urgency in resolving the matter.
“In fact, the President directed me that this shouldn’t take too long. It should not take too long, and I should get back to him on this issue,” he said.
The minister further explained that the federal government may engage the private sector to develop a more efficient electronic revenue collection system that would eliminate the gridlock currently being experienced at airport gates.
“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,” Keyamo added.
As an interim measure, the minister announced that a hybrid payment system will be introduced, allowing both cash payments and the use of Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) access cards already purchased by motorists, pending the outcome of the review.
