REFRESHING DIVERSE LEGAL PERSPECTIVES AND EXCITING INTELLECTUAL DEBATES ON THE AKWA IBOM AIR FEMALE PASSENGER IMBROGLIO
The Ibom Air flight saga of August 10, 2025 which involved a female passenger naturally attracted national attention and outcries. Many opinions were expressed, expectedly and certainly not in unison. It is good that that theatre of the absurd has ended or has been taken off public glare, as it were. It is also commendable that the Federal Government ordered the withdrawal of the criminal case against the female passenger. Expectedly, the dramatis persona, including members of the public, especially air travelers, would have learnt one or more useful lessons from the episode While that national embarrassment lasted, apart from the social media content it created, it came up for discussion at different serious fora- online and offline. Here are what I have titled “REFRESHING DIVERSE LEGAL PERSPECTIVES AND EXCITING INTELLECTUAL DEBATES ON THE AKWA IBOM AIR FEMALE PASSENGER IMBROGLIO”. These healthy exchanges between eminent minds on the “LAW AND LAWYERS” WhatsApp platform provide very fecund jurisprudential and legal insights on multiple perspectives to that Ibom Air flight incident. Happy reading!
Firstly, Prof Obiaraeri reacting to the NBA National position on the saga wrote as follows:
“This our NBA position dey somehow ooo. This is the kind of thing that happens when lawyers talk too much about right but no one remembers left. Why is there no single comment in the NBA position in condemnation of the female passenger’s unruly and disorderly conduct that led to the avoidable incident and even in the course of the entire brouhaha? Is it right to disobey lawful instructions that can endanger public safety aboard a flight? I think NBA owes the public the duty to enlighten them that disobedience of aviation safety rules is a capital NO. Besides, assault including verbal abuse of airline staff is intolerable anywhere across the globe. Are there no remedies/redresses available to the multiple air/ground airline staff that the female passenger variously assaulted, now that she has been whitewashed and presented as the victim for all purposes?
On the propriety of the flight ban, is there anything like human right to air travel or right to air travel via a particular commercial airline or airlines? What type of fair hearing will be required when a commercial airline is not interested or unwilling to avail a passenger the use of their services? Is air travel not contractual just like the average travel arrangements through other means like uber, bus, keke, okada? I think it is. Offer without acceptance can never lead to a contract.
Who will compel the commercial airline to airlift a passenger they do not want to have anything to do with? If the aggrieved prospective passenger approaches the Court, what relief will he or she be asking?
[Something like- an order of Court compelling the defendant to accept to airlift me whenever I want to travel by air!]. Will the Court ultimately impose a willing passenger on an unwilling airline?
I think not. Courts do not make contracts for parties. The Airline [Ibom Air] in league with their AON members are private concerns that cannot be compelled to sell air ticket or airlift a passenger they do not want. On the flip side, the passenger is not obligated to travel via any designated commercial airline or by air at all. It takes two to make a fight. An aggrieved prospective air traveler can buy a private jet and shun the commercial airlines and their unruly air and ground staff…. As the NBA pleases!”
In reaction or response to Prof Obiaraeri’s post above, Prof C. K. Okorie SAN wrote:
“The law is that you cannot correct a wrong or unlawful act via unlawful means. The permitted procedure in the circumstance is to report to the nearest police station. Incidentally, there is a police unit at the airport. The police is permitted by Police Act 2020, to use reasonable force where she refuses to submit to the police powers. Comprehensively speaking, air travelling is not completely contractual in character. It depends on the context or circumstances. Travelling is an integral part of right to freedom of movement. Airlines operators were given licence by the Federal Government before they started functioning. There are conditions therein which includes transporting Nigerians in the safest conditions without discrimination of any character. By this, they are bound to transport any Nigerian who has paid the approved fees. Thus, the contractual nature of air travel is not absolute rather qualified. Hence, the they lack the competence to issue life ban on any Nigerians. It is only court of law can do so if it is proved that the person constitutes perpetual health risk to the members of public.”
In further response to Prof C. K. Okorie SAN’s position above and issues raised therein, Prof Obiaraeri, clarified as follows:
“Learned Prof and Silk, I was thinking the Police Act, 2020 and the ACJA/ACJL permit power of private arrest. I was thinking too that one can only be airlifted by a commercial airline if one pays the airfare. Meaning, that air passenger = existence of offer and acceptance coupled with consideration. I was thinking too that there is what is called “freedom of contract” It will violate the settled principles of freedom of contract if commercial airline are compelled [sell ticket] to airlift a passenger who they are unwilling to contract with. Just like any commercial airline cannot compel a passenger to buy their ticket. Air travel is basically a simple offer and acceptance in contract based on each Airlines Contract of Carriage. Furthermore, the 2nd Schedule to the Civil Aviation Act 2022 that domesticates the Montreal Convention that states – Article 27: “Nothing contained in this Convention shall prevent the carrier from refusing to enter into any contract of carriage…” Learned Silk, this matter go longooo.
I notice you did not say anything about the exposed br..sts. That was cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment!”
In a very interesting move, on his part, Reverend Ikenna Emmanuel Esq wrote a fairly long response on the same matter which he titled “BALANCING THE JURIDICAL AND POLICY DIMENSIONS OF THE IBOM AIR PASSENGER BAN VIS-À-VIS THE NBA POSITION ON THE ISSUE A WHATSAPP DISCUSS BY NNAMDI OBIARAERI AND PROFESSOR C.K. OKORIE SAN”. He opined as follows:
“As a conscientious protégé of two of my distinguished mentors Professor Nnamdi Obiaraeri and Professor C.K. Okorie, SAN, I have studied with keen intellectual interest their erudite and well-reasoned submissions on the recent incident involving Ibom Air and a female passenger whose alleged unruly conduct precipitated her exclusion from the airline’s services. Their respective expositions are replete with jurisprudential insight, policy considerations, and normative clarity. In respectful deference to their scholarship, I venture to contribute my own juridical appraisal of the matter, situating it within the matrix of international civil aviation norms fundamental rights jurisprudence, and applicable Nigerian legal frameworks. This intervention seeks to reconcile both standpoints within a harmonised, globally compliant legal position.
1. THE PASSENGER’S CONDUCT AND THE PRIMACY OF AVIATION SAFETY
UNder International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) regulatory instruments, notably Annex 17 on security and Annex 9 on facilitation, unruly or disruptive passenger conduct constitutes a grave infraction against the imperatives of aviation safety and order. ICAO Doc. 9811 — Manual on the Prevention and Management of Unruly Passenger Incidents — affirms the prerogative of carriers to deny embarkation to passengers who pose a threat to safety, good order, or the comfort of other passengers and crew.
On this score, Professor Nnamdi Obiaraeri’s contention is unassailable: disobedience to lawful safety directives issued by flight crew not only endangers lives but undermines the sanctity of aviation protocols. The assault — whether verbal or physical — of airline personnel is proscribed under both the Nigerian Civil Aviation Regulations (NCAR) Part 17 and the broader corpus of international civil aviation standards.
2. THE CONTRACTUAL CHARACTER OF AIR TRAVEL — ABSOLUTE OR QUALIFIED?
While the carriage of passengers by air is, in form, contractual – founded upon the exchange of consideration and mutual assent as evidenced by the purchase of a ticket – it is not an unqualified private law arrangement. Professor C.K. Okorie, SAN aptly underscores that airlines in Nigeria operate under public service obligations as a corollary of their licensing by the Federal Government. The Civil Aviation Act 2022 and ICAO guidelines enjoin carriers to provide services without unlawful discrimination, thereby superimposing a regulatory layer upon the otherwise private contractual nexus. Consequently, the “pure contract” thesis is somewhat attenuated by the airline’s statutory obligations to the travelling public, subject always to legitimate safety and security exclusions.
3. FREEDOM OF MOVEMENT VIS-À-VIS THE RIGHT TO AIR CARRIAGE
From a human rights perspective, Article 12 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and Article 13 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) enshrine the right to freedom of movement within a State’s territory and to leave any country. However, this right does not crystallise into an enforceable entitlement to travel aboard a specific commercial carrier. Here, Professor Nnamdi Obiaraeri is correct that no legal principle compels a particular airline to convey a passenger against its will, provided there exists a justifiable basis. Nonetheless, Professor C.K. Okorie, SAN correctly warns that the imposition of a permanent or life ban without judicial imprimatur could amount to a de facto curtailment of the right to movement — especially in a market where alternative air carriage options are limited — and would, therefore, require careful constitutional scrutiny.
4. REMEDIES AND ENFORCEMENT MECHANISMS IN CASES OF UNRULY CONDUCT
Both ICAO and the International Air Transport Association (IATA) recommend that unruly passenger incidents be addressed through lawful enforcement pathways, including administrative sanctions, civil liability, and criminal prosecution, rather than by indefinite exclusionary measures alone. Under Nigerian law — particularly NCAR Part 17.29 — disruptive behavior attracts regulatory penalties.
Professor Nnamdi Obiaraeri’s – insistence on vindicating the rights of assaulted airline personnel through civil and criminal remedies is firmly anchored in law. Equally, Professor C. K. Okorie, SAN’s admonition that no wrong should be redressed by unlawful means resonates with the due process guarantees under Section 36 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended)
5. PROPORTIONALITY, DUE PROCESS, AND THE JUDICIAL FUNCTION
International human rights jurisprudence applies the principle of proportionality to all restrictions on fundamental rights. Sanctions must be necessary, reasonable, and proportionate to the legitimate aim pursued. A temporary exclusion from carriage, pending investigation, may be justified; however, a permanent interdiction absent judicial oversight risks falling foul of both proportionality and due process requirements.
In this regard, Professor Nnamdi Obiaraeri’s affirmation of the carrier’s inherent right to preserve safety and operational integrity harmonises with Professor C. K. Okorie, SAN’s insistence that permanent exclusions should be subject to judicial review. Courts, while refraining from compelling unwilling parties into contractual relations, remain the ultimate arbiters of whether such sanctions comport with constitutional and statutory norms.
CONCLUSION
In synthesis: Professor Nnamdi Obiaraeri correctly articulates the operational imperatives of safety, crew protection, and the contractual discretion of carriers. Professor C. K. Okorie, SAN cogently asserts the necessity of judicial oversight to guard against arbitrary and disproportionate sanctions that could indirectly infringe the right to movement. International civil aviation law vindicates airline discretion in the interest of safety while simultaneously mandating proportionality, non-discrimination, and procedural fairness.
As a diligent student of both eminent scholars, I submit that the NBA, in articulating its position, ought to unequivocally condemn any form of passenger misconduct that jeopardises aviation safety, while concurrently affirming the principle that punitive measures by carriers must adhere to the dictates of due process, proportionality, and international best practice.
CAUTION TO NIGERIAN AIR TRAVELERS:
This case serves as a cautionary precedent to all Nigerian air passengers: unruly behavior, non-compliance with crew instructions, and assault — verbal or physical — upon airline staff are intolerable under Nigerian and international aviation law. Airlines such as Ibom Air operate under stringent safety obligations, and any conduct that jeopardises the safety, comfort, and dignity of passengers or crew invites lawful sanctions.
RECOMMENDATIONS
1. For Passengers: Nigerian travelers must internalise the culture of civility, compliance with safety instructions, and respect for airline personnel to ensure both their rights and safety are preserved.
2. For Airlines (including Ibom Air): While safety remains paramount, punitive measures should conform to due process, proportionality, and non-discrimination principles, with judicial oversight where permanent bans are contemplated.
3. For the NBA: The Nigerian Bar Association should take a balanced public stance — condemning misconduct that endangers aviation safety while also affirming passengers’ due process rights in line with constitutional and international standards.”
I can only add that I adopt the above recommendations as mine. Thank goodness the imbroglio ended the way it did.
A new normal is possible!
Prof Obiaraeri, N. O.
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