Ibom Air fracas: Comfort begins life at Kirikiri; NBA wades in 

By Henry Umoru, Ikechukwu Nnochiri, Henry Ojelu, John Alechenu & Dickson Omobola

LAGOS — Comfort Bob, the Ibom Air passenger, who caused a stir at the Murtala Muhammad Airport in Lagos on Sunday, appears to have begun a new life inside the female wing of Kirikiri Prison, as she was ushered in at about 6.30 pm on Monday by police officers from the Airport Command, Ikeja, with a remand order which lapses October 6.

However, the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, yesterday condemned as reckless and unlawful, the treatment of the passenger who had sensitive parts of her body exposed in a viral video.

The NBA also disagreed with Airline Operators of Nigeria, AON, over the indefinite ‘no fly’ ban slammed on the passenger, just as the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA, replied those drawing similarity between the ValueJet incident which involved musician, Wasiu Ayinde, also known as Kwam 1, and that of the Ibom Air passenger, saying both incidents were not same.

A source within the prison, who told Vanguard yesterday that Comfort Bob was brought into the Female Prisons, Kirikiri, with a remand order, disclosed that the 26-year-old student was calm and did not betray any emotion and was promptly processed as a first time offender.

The source said: “When she was brought in yesterday (Monday), she was classified as a first time offender and kept separate from other inmates. She didn’t really show any emotions here but she came with her luggage.

“Since she is not a government official and also not a well-known individual, she did not qualify as a very important person. She might have been known for the fracas at the airport, but our classification here doesn’t qualify her as a VIP.

“During her admission process handled by our senior official, she was briefed on the rules and regulations of the female prison. She was also given an option of skills available in the prison that she can learn.

“We have schools and vocational training here. Even if someone is staying for just a week or a month, they don’t remain idle in a cell — they are encouraged to learn something.

“In the past, these opportunities were only for convicted inmates, but now we also offer them to those awaiting trial, whose numbers are far higher than the convicted population.”

Asked if the inmate had received any visitor since she was brought in, the source disclosed that a few people visited her yesterday.

The source, however, refused to disclose the identity of the visitors, saying it is against prison rules to do so.

“It is within her right to receive visitors and one or two persons visited her yesterday. I don’t know if they are her relatives but it is also against rules here to disclose the identity of visitors.”

Another source also told Vanguard late yesterday that officials of the female prison have been instructed not to divulge information about Comfort’s stay in the facility.

Meanwhile, a passenger aboard the aircraft who witnessed what transpired, Olubunmi Balogun Shonubi, took to her Facebook page yesterday to recount what happened.

She recounted: “Funny enough, I was on this flight and this babe sat right next to me across the aisle. We were on the emergency row.

“When she came in, one of the air hostesses (the one she slapped) was very polite and helpful during the flight told the girl to switch off her phone for take-off etc.

‘’After she left, one other ‘witch’ of an air hostess came and really spoke down on the girl. The girl told her the button on her phone for switch off was not working. The woman replied that it is an iPhone and does not need a button.

‘’The girl said she does not know how to do it. The woman told her to go to the settings etc. and the girl said: ’Please, take my phone and do it. I cannot read.’’’

NBA condemns lifetime ban on passenger, pledges legal support

Reacting to the incident yesterday, the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, condemned as reckless and unlawful, the treatment of Ms. Comfort Bob.

NBA, which is the umbrella body of legal practitioners in the country, in a statement jointly signed by its President and Secretary-General, Mazi Afam Osigwe, SAN, and Dr. Mobolaji Ojibara, respectively, further described the lifetime flight ban imposed on the passenger by Ibom Air and the Airline Operators of Nigeria, AON, as arbitrary and unjust.

The NBA statement read: “It is deeply disturbing that Ms. Emmanson was forcibly removed from the aircraft, stripped of her clothing in public, and subjected to humiliation that was filmed and circulated online.

“Such conduct is degrading, violates her right to dignity and privacy, and falls far short of the standards of civility and professionalism expected in the aviation sector.

“No person, regardless of the circumstances, should be treated in such a dehumanising manner.

“While Ibom Air has issued its own account of events, other video footage has emerged showing an Ibom Air hostess preventing Ms. Bob from alighting from the aircraft, a conduct that could constitute false imprisonment and a possible provocation that escalated the situation.

“This makes it all the more critical that the matter be subjected to an independent, impartial investigation by the appropriate authorities before any disciplinary action is taken against her.

“The decision to impose a lifetime ban without affording Ms. Emmanson a fair opportunity to be heard is equally troubling.

“Ibom Air has so far only presented its own version of events without giving her the chance to respond. This one-sided process, culminating in a ban supported by AON, breaches the fundamental principle of fair hearing and renders the decision legally and morally indefensible.

“The power to suspend or restrict a passenger’s right to fly rests with the appropriate statutory regulator, not private associations or airline operators acting unilaterally.

“The photographing, dissemination, and online circulation of indecent images of Ms. Emmanson is also an egregious invasion of privacy and a criminal act.

“Even if the incident was to be reported, the footage should have been blurred or edited in such a way that it did not expose her nudity to the public.

“Those responsible for capturing and distributing the unedited footage must be identified and prosecuted.

“Such acts erode public trust and undermine the rights of all citizens to be treated with dignity and respect.

“The NBA demands that Ibom Air immediately withdraw the lifetime ban, issue a public apology to Ms. Emmanson, and cooperate fully with an impartial investigation into this incident.

“We also call on the Minister for Aviation, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, and relevant security agencies to conduct a thorough inquiry, sanction all those found culpable, and enforce strict compliance with established standards for the humane treatment of air passengers.

“The NBA stands ready to provide Ms. Emmanson with pro bono legal support to ensure her rights are protected and that she obtains redress for the violations suffered.

“We will not remain silent while the fundamental rights of any Nigerian are trampled upon, whether by public authorities, private corporations, or individuals. Respect for human dignity and the rule of law must never be compromised, and in this matter, justice must prevail.’’

Ibom Air case not same as KWAM-1 incident, says NCAA

Replying those comparing the ValueJet Kwam-1 case to Ibom Air’s Ms Emmanson, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority said the two cases were different.

It also dismissed insinuations that neither Ibom Air nor AON had the right to slam life ban on the passenger.

NCAA’s Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, Mike Achimugu, who stated this on his X handle explained that the regulatory body did not direct the airline to prosecute or ban Emmanson, noting that Ibom Air acted independently based on available evidence.

He said, “In this case, the airline exercised its rights to do what they needed to do, right? And AON, based on some of the evidences already available, because while the investigations are ongoing, you can still be working with what is available to you.

“Now, for you who say you are in the industry, when you see a passenger hitting a cabin crew member in the way the lady was doing, and the fight she had with the people who came to restrain her, you may have to agree that the airline had every right to announce a ban.

“Yeah, of course, one would expect that at the end of all of these things, maybe the ban could be shortened or even removed altogether.

“But as of the moment, if they feel that that’s the right thing, because again, don’t forget, airline staff are also human beings, and they’re also fellow Nigerians.

“Some of them are your brothers and your sisters, and they deserve the same courtesy that passengers also deserve. Now, nobody deserves to be beaten up or hit in the manner that occurred in this flight.”

Achimugu said the Airline Operators of Nigeria acted within its rights, citing other past incidents where lack of evidence hindered regulatory action.

“Remember, there was an airport incident where three drunk people had mid-air between London and Nigeria, caused a situation that could have crashed that flight.

“To date, Air Peace feels aggrieved that nobody issued an advisory for those passengers to be blacklisted. But you see, evidence of what happened on board was not made available to the NCAA. So it became a case of he said, she said.

“I just want to put it out there very clearly that the NCAA did not issue an advisory to AON, and AON is within its right to ban any passenger, to blacklist a passenger. Just to make this clear,” he said.

He added that while Ibom Air swiftly charged Emmanson to court, ValueJet did not press charges in KWAM-1’s case, prompting NCAA to petition the authorities.

“Cabin crew are in charge of, apart from your comfort, safety and security and everything on the aircraft. We have the authority there. Blocking the path of somebody who has assaulted you is also a form of restraint.

“She wanted to restrain the passenger without laying hands on her, she’s within her rights to do so. I don’t know if it’s standard practice. I will have to check with director of AVSEC at the NCAA to check the documents and see. But look, there are different ways to restrain an unruly passenger. Standard practices can always evolve and change,” he said.

Peter Obi questions due process in Ibom Air’s lifetime ban

In another reaction yesterday, the presidential candidate of Labour Party, LP, in 2023 elections, Peter Obi, also condemned the lifetime flight ban imposed by the Airline Operators of Nigeria and Ibom Air on the embattled passenger.

Obi on his X handle, criticised Nigeria’s justice system, likening it to a “spider’s web” that ensnares the weak while allowing the powerful to escape, and questioned the fairness and due process behind Emmanson’s sanction.

He also questioned the process that led to Emmanson’s sanction, asking whether all avenues for justice and compassionate resolution had been exhausted.

Obi said it was a “tragic irony” that a young woman could be barred for life while “those in positions of authority perpetrate far greater offences that harm the nation deeply, yet move freely in comfort, shielded from consequences”.

He wrote: “This morning (yesterday), I woke up to learn that the passenger, the young Ms Comfort Bob, in her twenties, has been banned from flying for life — once again showing how our system works, proving the truth of Anacharsis’s words that ‘the law is like a spider’s web: it catches the weak, while the powerful break through with ease.’

“There is something systemically wrong and unjust about this authoritarian decision. What due process was followed overnight, leading to this sanction? Have we exhausted the avenues of justice and compassionate resolution in this matter?

“It is a tragic irony that a young lady in her twenties can be banned for life, while we — her parents — commit worse crimes against humanity and are celebrated.

“Those in positions of authority perpetrate far greater offences that harm the nation deeply, yet move freely in comfort, shielded from consequences.

“In Ms Bob’s case, the authorities acted with lightning speed, but the same urgency is absent when dealing with the influential and politically connected.

“If this young woman, who, indeed, acted wrongly, now seeks to apologise, who will hear her cry in a country where the pain of the poor is invisible and the dignity of the less privileged is often disregarded? Justice must be consistent, or it becomes oppression in disguise.”

Selective justice is no justice — Labour Party

Also reacting, the Senator Esther Nenadi-Usman-led Labour Party, LP, said great nations are built on the equality of citizens before the law, noting that selective justice is no justice at all.

According to the party, the handling of Kwam-1’s case, which was in sharp contrast to the swift punishment meted out on another citizen, Ms. Comfort Bob, after a similar incident on Ibom Air, smacked of selective justice.

In a statement by Ken Asogwa, the Senior Special Adviser to the Acting National Chairman of Labour Party, Nenadi-Usman, the party said: “Last week, Nigerians were stunned by the disturbing report that a popular Fuji musician, K1 De Ultimate (Kwam 1), allegedly endangered the lives of passengers aboard a Value Jet aircraft by attempting to stop a taxiing plane.

“This flagrant violation of established aviation safety regulations was conveniently glossed over by the relevant authorities.

“Fast forward to this week: Ms. Comfort Bob, a passenger aboard an Ibom Air flight, was prevented from disembarking because she refused to switch off her phone during take-off, despite having placed it on flight mode.

“Reports allege that she assaulted a crew member in protest. What followed was a swift and shocking sequence of events: Ms. Bob was stripped naked by aviation security, arraigned, imprisoned at Kirikiri Prisons, banned for life from flying Ibom Air, and placed on the Airlines Operators of Nigeria’s “No-Fly” list — all within 24 hours of the incident. Who knew Nigerian justice could move with such lightning speed?

“While it is true that Ms. Bob violated passenger safety guidelines, her inhumane treatment — a blatant violation of the constitutional right to personal dignity – is an even more grievous offence, especially when committed by those trained to enforce discipline, not abuse it.

“Even more troubling is the timing. This incident comes just days after the shameful Value Jet episode involving Kwam 1, where several aviation stakeholders scrambled to defend the musician, rather than condemn his recklessness.

‘’This selective application of justice is not justice at all; it is the most insidious form of pretended justice.”

Senate to investi-gate recent air-line, passenger’ face-off

Reviewing the situation yesterday, the Senate vowed to carry out an investigation into airlines/passengers’ face-off in the aviation industry.

In a statement by the Chairman, Committee on Aviation, Senator Abdulfatai Buhari (APC, Oyo North), the Senate emphasised that the developments demand immediate and coordinated action to protect the integrity of the sector and restore public confidence.

According to him, the Upper chamber is carrying out the action in exercise of its constitutional powers by engaging key regulatory bodies, operators, security agencies, and public interest groups to establish the facts, review existing procedures, and ensure that necessary corrective measures were swiftly implemented.

While assuring Nigerians that the Senate is maintaining active oversight and will drive the process toward enforceable solutions that prevent a recurrence of such incidents, Senator Buhari said: “We will not allow procedural gaps or lapses in enforcement to undermine safety, professionalism, or public trust in our aviation system.”

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