Festus Keyamo, the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, has called for an investigation into an incident involving Air Peace and Senator Adams Oshiomhole, who represents Edo North.
Gatekeepers News reports that Keyamo took to social media platform X on Friday to instruct relevant aviation agencies to collect all pertinent evidence and submit their findings to his office.
This follows Air Peace’s accusation that Oshiomhole disrupted its operations and assaulted its workers after missing a scheduled flight. Viral video on X showed the senator communicating with an airport official and later sitting in front of a gate at the Zulu Hall, located within the Murtala Muhammed Airport Terminal 1.
In response to the accusations, Oshiomhole denied causing any disruption and stated that he was protesting against what he described as extortion and arbitrary policy changes implemented by the airline. He claimed that Air Peace demanded extra payments from passengers who had checked in online prior to boarding.
Air Peace, in its rebuttal, labeled Oshiomhole’s comments as “deliberate falsehood,” asserting that no passengers were asked to pay additional fees after the check-in closure.
In light of the incident, Minister Keyamo mentioned that he has been in direct contact with both parties since the occurrence. He urged them to exercise restraint in their public communications.
“In the wake of the incident at the Lagos Airport last Wednesday involving AIRPEACE Airline and His Excellency, Senator Adams Oshiomhole, I have been in direct contact with both parties since that morning,” Keyamo said.
“Whilst appealing to both sides to halt the public accusations and counter-accusations, I am further directing the relevant aviation agencies to thoroughly look into the issue, collect all available evidence and revert to my office so we can deal with the issue in such a way as to guide future conducts in similar situations.”
The minister also urged the aviation agencies to avoid rushing to conclusions, noting the importance of adhering to the long-standing legal principle of listening to all parties before reaching a judgement.
