COMFORT Emmanson, the passenger who allegedly assaulted airline officials on an Ibom Air flight from Uyo to Lagos, has been arraigned and remanded at the Kirikiri Correctional Facility.
However, days after a separate airport obstruction incident involving Fuji musician, Wasiu Ayinde, no charges have been filed against him.
Ayinde, an influential musician widely believed to have strong links with the Nigerian government, has been walking freely on the street one week after he was seen in viral videos blocking a ValueJet aircraft from taxiing at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja because he was not allowed to board.
The musician was holding a flask suspected to contain alcohol. Consequently, he was requested to drop the flask for officials to check but he declined.
Peeved by the boarding denial, Ayinde, also called KI De Ultimate and KWAM 1, severally attempted to stop the aircraft from taking off, and he was lucky to have escaped being severed by one of the flight’s wings when the pilot angrily left the tarmac with the aircraft without clearance.
KWAM 1 said in a statement by his media aide hours after the news filtered into the public that the airport authorities apologised to him and flew him to his destination in a private jet.
Reacting to the musician’s behaviour, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, blacklisted him from boarding any aircraft for six months.
The minister described his action, and that of the pilot an act of insanity.
Keyamo specifically vowed that any aircraft that flies the musician within six months would be sanctioned. This was besides the probe he ordered into the matter.
Recall that the NCAA had shortly after the incident withdrawn the pilot and the co-pilot’s licences.
KWAM 1 eventually apologised to Nigerians and the government following widespread condemnations his conduct attracted.
Despite calls by Nigerians that he must face the law for his action, he has yet to be arrested or dragged to court like Comfort Emmanson.
Meanwhile, while Nigerians also strongly condemned Emmanson’s conduct, it did not take the authorities 24 hours to charge her in court and remanded her.
While the government vowed to investigate the musician’s conduct at the airport, no information is yet in the public domain about what action the government has taken against him.
In a post on X on Monday, April 11, Tunde Moshood, Special Adviser on Media and Communications to the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, confirmed that Emmanson had been charged and taken to court.
His statement came shortly after the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) warned that enforcement action against unruly conduct at airports would become more frequent.
“The more reason the flying public should be more careful the unruly passenger on Uyo, Lagos bound Ibom Air, Miss Comfort Emmanson, has been charged to court and she’s now cooling off in Kirikiri,” Moshood wrote.
The ICIR reported that Emmanson was recorded attacking flight attendants and airport security officials at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos State.
Ibom Air explained that the incident began before take-off in Uyo when Emmanson refused to comply with safety protocols requiring her to switch off her mobile phone. A fellow passenger eventually switched off the device, sparking a verbal tirade, the airline said.
Upon arrival in Lagos, the airline said Emmanson confronted the purser who had earlier instructed her to switch off her phone and physically assaulted her. The airline described her behaviour as a serious threat to the safety of crew, passengers, and the aircraft.
Ibom Air has since imposed a permanent travel ban on Emmanson, prohibiting her from flying on any of its aircraft in the future.
Marcus bears the light, and he beams it everywhere. He's a good governance and decent society advocate. He's The ICIR Reporter of the Year 2022 and has been the organisation's News Editor since September 2023. Contact him via email @ mfatunmole@icirnigeria.org