Nigeria’s carrier, Air Peace yesterday accused a prominent senator of assaulting staff and disrupting flight operations at the Murtala Muhammed Airport Terminal 1, Ikeja, Lagos. The was later confirmed to be former Edo State Governor and current senator, Adams Oshiomhole.
A viral video circulating on social media showed Oshiomhole in a heated argument with an airport official and physically locking the terminal’s entrance gate.
Reacting to the incident, Air Peace released a statement condemning what it described as “unacceptable behaviour” that disrupted operations and inconvenienced passengers.
The airline alleged that the politician arrived at the Zulu Terminal around 6:10 a.m. for Flight P47120 to Abuja, which was scheduled for 6:30 a.m. and had already closed boarding in line with Air Peace’s on-time policy.
“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.
“This unacceptable behaviour caused significant disruption to ongoing operations and affected numerous travellers. To minimise further inconvenience, Air Peace swiftly activated an operational contingency plan to board affected passengers through an alternate terminal.”
Though the airline did not mention Oshiomhole by name, it however, reiterated its commitment to discipline, respect for due process, and a zero-tolerance stance on aggression against staff or passengers.
“We are deeply saddened that such a high-profile figure displayed conduct so unbecoming and disruptive to fellow passengers and our personnel,” it said.
But in his response, Oshiomhole offered a sharply different account, accusing the airline of deliberately preventing legitimate passengers from boarding while reselling tickets at inflated rates to others.
“I booked Air Peace… They delayed the flight for over five hours. In the end, they announced a cancellation. I had to get another ticket. Yesterday, I booked a flight for 6:30 a.m., which is their first flight today. I booked and asked them to check me in online, which I did, along with two other Ghanaians who met me in Lagos,” the senator explained.
He said he arrived at the airport a few minutes after 6 a.m. and presented evidence of online check-in, only to be told that boarding had closed, despite the plane still being on the ground and new passengers allegedly being admitted.
He queried: “How can you close boarding for a 6:30 flight at 6:05? What is the purpose of online check-in, then?”
According to Oshiomhole, the issue escalated when he observed similar complaints from other passengers who had arrived on time but were denied boarding. He accused the airline of exploiting the situation by reselling seats on the spot at exorbitant prices.
“They were selling tickets on the spot for between N200,000 and N300,000. To take advantage of the situation, they discouraged those who had bought tickets online at lower rates and sold to people willing to pay more,” he alleged.
The senator cited the case of a woman with a six-month-old baby who bought her ticket for N146,000 but was told she must wait for the next flight on the condition she paid an additional N109,100.
“That’s about N256,000 for a one-hour flight to Abuja,” he said.
Oshiomhole claimed the airline’s staff ignored protests from several stranded passengers until security agents from the DSS and Air Force intervened. He added that he personally gave the woman N500,000 to resolve her situation.
“I told them this cannot be allowed. I checked in online and arrived on time. The aircraft hadn’t taken off. I’m not supposed to check in twice. The rowdiness arose because many people were denied boarding while tickets were being sold on the spot to others.”
The incident has sparked conversations around airline accountability and passenger rights, with industry observers calling for regulatory scrutiny over alleged sharp practices by domestic carriers.
