The Nigerian Government appears to have given up the possibility of protecting commuters on the 185km Abuja-Kaduna Road as Aero Contractors got its backing to start flights on the route.
Dozens of travellers including federal lawmakers and top government officials have either been kidnapped or killed along the road despite assurances from the government and security agencies.
“I want to assure Nigerians that Kaduna-Abuja Road is now safe. We have cleared the road, we have arrested a lot of kidnappers and some of them were fatally injured during the confrontation we had with them.
“The road is now cleared for use by travellers and our patrol teams comprising combined security services are there constantly working each day,” Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, told Journalists after a meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari in 2019.
The airline, it was gathered, has deployed its Bombardier Dash 8 aircraft and now flies the route four days in a week for prominent people and government officials, who have shunned travelling by road due to potential security threats.
To reduce the risk of being kidnapped or attacked by robbers, a good number of travellers between Kaduna and Abuja have embraced the use of trains.
Reported attacks against passengers riding on trains have also raised concerns that the route might also not be completely safe.
