- President Bola Tinubu has ordered the immediate suspension of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria’s (FAAN) mandatory cashless payment policy after it caused severe traffic congestion and travel delays.
- The “Operation Go Cashless” initiative, which began on March 1, 2026, led to massive vehicular queues at major hubs in Lagos and Abuja, with many passengers reportedly missing their flights due to slow POS processing and network failures.
- The suspension comes despite earlier defenses from Aviation Minister Festus Keyamo, who had insisted the move was necessary to eliminate corruption and optimize revenue collection at airport gates.
President Bola Tinubu has intervened in the growing crisis at Nigeria’s international airports by ordering the suspension of FAAN’s controversial cashless payment policy.
Eko Hot Blog reports that the directive, issued on Wednesday, March 4, 2026, follows four days of logistical chaos at airport access gates across the country.
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The policy had banned cash payments for toll gates, car parks, and executive lounges, mandating the use of digital channels such as the “FAAN Go Cashless Card,” e-tags, and POS terminals.
The implementation of the policy, which officially kicked off at the start of the month, resulted in immediate gridlock at Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos and Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja.
Motorists and travelers were left stranded as banking network issues plagued POS transactions, causing vehicular lines to stretch far beyond airport premises.
The frustration peaked as numerous passengers missed scheduled flights, sparking a wave of public outrage on social media and at the terminals.
Ironically, the President’s order arrived just hours after the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, had taken to X (formerly Twitter) to appeal for patience.
Keyamo had argued that while the system faced teething problems, the government was determined to end cash collections to curb corruption.
FAAN had projected that the digital shift, launched in partnership with Paystack, would increase revenue by 75% through improved transparency.
However, the technical reality on the ground proved inadequate for the high volume of airport traffic.
Under the now-suspended “Operation Go Cashless,” users were expected to use prepaid cards or automatic e-tags for seamless access.
While the long-term goal remains the modernization of airport infrastructure, the immediate focus has shifted back to ensuring the free flow of traffic and passenger convenience.
Aviation authorities are now expected to go back to the drawing board to address the network reliability and processing speeds that crippled the initial rollout.
