Ibom Air: The poor must not be punished while the powerful walks free – Peter Obi

The 2023 Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has frowned at Nigeria’s judicial system, saying the poor must not be punished while the powerful walk free.

In a post on his official X handle on Tuesday, Obi apologised to Ibom Air and its crew for the unacceptable conduct of one of their passengers.

The former Anambra State governor condemned the life ban on a passenger of Ibom Air, Ms. Comfort Emmanson, from flying for assaulting air crew.

Obi said the life ban of Ms. Emmanson proved the truth of Anacharsis’ words that the law is like a spider’s web: it catches the weak, while the powerful break through with ease.

“This morning, I woke up to learn that the passenger, the young Ms. Comfort Emmanson in her twenties, has been banned from flying for life.

There is everything 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 on 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. Emmanson’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,” Obi wrote.

According to him, justice must be equal for all, stressing that there must be room for compassion, for rehabilitation, and for understanding when misconduct stems from frustration or displaced aggression.

Ibom Air: The poor must not be punished while the powerful walks free – Peter Obi