I am compelled to speak, not out of anger alone, but out of a deep love for this country, which grows heavier each time we are forced to swallow indignities as though they are normal. In a land where the powerful often watch in silence while ordinary citizens suffer, it is only fair to recognise a man who chose differently. Senator Adams Oshiomhole could have taken the easy road. He could have walked away. But instead, he stood for the dignity of passengers. He stood for Nigerians.
My personal experience with Air Peace on Friday, 6 June 2025, is one more sad testimony of how deeply broken we have become as a people. I had booked a ticket on Air Peace, Flight P4726ABVKAN, scheduled to depart for Kano at 1740 hours. As a responsible traveller, I arrived at the airport as early as 3 pm, checked in, received my boarding pass, and was assigned seat 16A. Everything seemed in order , until Nigeria happened.
After being checked in and seated in the departure lounge for over six long hours, not a single announcement was made concerning the status of our flight. Nothing. No delay (there was no announcement or notice that the flight was delayed).
No explanation. Not even the courtesy of a simple apology. It was only after passengers, already frustrated, approached the Air Peace counter to inquire that we were casually informed that the flight had been delayed till 11 pm.
We waited again, anxious but hopeful. Then another announcement: the flight had now been rescheduled to midnight. The ordeal was unending. But as bad as our situation was, we soon witnessed even worse cruelty meted out to another group of passengers, their flight to Asaba was cancelled outright after several hours of waiting. No accommodation was provided, no transportation arranged, no formal apology offered. They were simply told, coldly: ‘Find somewhere to stay till tomorrow’. Imagine the indignity of families, women, children and elderly citizens abandoned without any form of assistance, after paying full fare for a service they never received.
Let us be clear: both international and Nigerian aviation regulations are very clear on these matters. The International Civil Aviation Organisation mandates that airlines provide care, accommodation, and compensation when delays and cancellations are not the fault of passengers. Nigeria’s own civil aviation regulations demand that airlines take responsibility and show respect to passengers who suffer such avoidable delays. But who cares about rules when consequences are practically nonexistent?
Finally, at 3 am, a full 10 hours after our scheduled departure, we were called to board. We walked across the tarmac in the pouring rain, completely exposed: elderly people, women, and children, dragging their bags under heavy rainfall like displaced refugees in their own country. And just when we thought the nightmare was over, the pilot announced that he could not fly because the crew had ‘had a long day’ It took the collective protest and agitation of exhausted passengers before the flight was reluctantly allowed to proceed.
One would think that after such shameful conduct, the airline and regulators would at least accept responsibility and seek to do better. But no. In an even more astonishing display of arrogance, the spokesperson of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Michael Achimugu has not only stepped forward to defend Air Peace’s inexcusable actions but has now had the audacity to speak against Oshiomhole, the very man who stood up for the rights of passengers.
It is both shameful and tragic that instead of standing for the Nigerian people they were appointed to protect, officials of the NCAA would rather defend an airline whose actions clearly violate both domestic and international standards. Where was this NCAA when passengers were stranded for hours without food, shelter, or assistance? Where was their defense when Nigerians were abandoned at the mercy of fate?
Oshiomhole’s intervention must therefore be seen for what it truly is: an act of rare courage and patriotism. As a man of privilege, he could have quietly secured his own comfort while others suffered. But he chose conscience over convenience. He stood in the gap for ordinary Nigerians who have become voiceless victims of systemic failure. His choice to challenge the status quo is a sharp rebuke to the culture of indifference that dominates our public and private sectors.
The greater tragedy here is not simply about Air Peace. It is about the impunity that continues unchecked in our aviation sector and many other industries. This is the same airline that flies prestigious international routes to London, Jeddah, Johannesburg and elsewhere , yet at home, its Nigerian passengers are treated as though they are undeserving of even basic decency. Why? Because regulatory oversight has collapsed. Because enforcement is weak. Because punishment exists only in theory.
This must stop. The National Assembly’s Committee on Aviation, with its clear oversight mandate, must no longer pretend to be a bystander in this matter. Nigerians need them to act decisively. The Presidency too cannot continue to watch while Nigerian citizens are degraded and insulted by airlines that are supposed to serve them. The image of our nation, the integrity of our laws, and the dignity of our people are all at stake.
There is a Hausa proverb that says, “the thief may enjoy a thousand days, but the owner needs only one”. One day, Nigerians will say enough. And when that day comes, those who stood by silently will have no defense.
Oshiomhole refused to stand by. He chose principle over self-interest. He chose to speak up for Nigerians when many would have chosen to protect their personal comfort. For that, I salute him. May his courage awaken the conscience of every Nigerian who still believes that this country can become better, if only we find the moral strength to confront impunity head-on.
PTO Aro mni
