There was a mild drama at Lagos Airport on Wednesday.
Passengers, airline officials, aviation workers and others could not believe it as Senator Adams Oshiomhole (Edo North) reportedly disrupted operations at Nigeria’s busiest and most profitable airport.
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The affected airline, Air Peace, immediately issued a strong statement and condemned what it described as “unruly conduct” of Oshiomhole.
The former Edo State governor reportedly disrupted operations at Terminal 1 (Zulu Hall) of the Murtala Muhammed Airport around 6:15am.
He arrived at the terminal for a flight to Abuja, scheduled to depart at 6:30 am.
According to Air Peace, the boarding process had already closed in line with its strict on-time departure policy, and the flight departed as scheduled.
But, Oshiomhole would have none of that. Upon being informed he had missed the flight, he became physically aggressive, assaulted airline staff, blocked the terminal entrance and prevented other passengers from accessing the departure hall.
“Upon being informed of the missed flight, the politician resorted to violence, physically assaulting our staff and forcefully barricading the terminal’s entrance. He went as far as sealing the entry gate and manning the access point, effectively obstructing other passengers from gaining entry into the terminal,” Air Peace said.
Expectedly, the disruption caused significant delays for other passengers. In response, the airline immediately activated a contingency plan to reroute travellers through an alternate terminal to minimise the chaos.
One of the officials expressed shock at Oshiomhole’s behaviour.
“What he did was unbelievable. He tried to disrupt our operations. He instigated a lot of his followers. He blocked the departure gates. He took laws into his hands. A senator? Can he act like that at any international airport abroad?
“His actions created a scene, with him jumping onto a baggage conveyor belt and attempting to carry seats to block the departure hall.
“He probably forgot that the airport has CCTV. He admitted he came late but said he had checked in online.
“He was shouting ‘I am not here for privilege, give me my ticket or give me my cash’. Efforts to calm him down by other passengers who also came late and some airport officials proved abortive”.
Air Peace continued: “We are deeply saddened that such a high-profile figure displayed conduct so unbecoming and disruptive to fellow passengers and our personnel. Air Peace maintains a zero-tolerance stance on violence or any form of aggression against our staff and passengers”.
The airline said it was already preparing a formal report on the incident to be submitted to the Senate, the NCAA, the Department of State Services (DSS), and other relevant authorities “for investigation and possible disciplinary action”.
