Egypt Air Reacts to Joshua Abdul-Azeez's Story

Vanguard investigations at Egypt Air Head office where Mr Kunle Abdul-Azeez purchased his ticket revealed that there has been palpable fear about what Abdulazeez’s guardians would do next after the visit of his uncle, Mr Toju Gbenebichie, to Egypt Air office.

Vanguard sought to speak with Mr Khaled El Rafie, General Manager, Lagos, Egypt Air, but was told that he traveled and will be back later in the day. But members of staff of Egypt Air told Vanguard that the entire organization was very remorseful about the incident especially as it involved a 17 year old boy.

One of them who begged for anonymity, as they have not been mandated to speak on the issue, said it was actually “a mix up” on the part of Egypt Air ticket officer, Mr Tony Nzan. The officer also said Mr. Nzan has been very sober after the incident and he went the extra mile of trying to arrange an alternative ticket through a friend in Turkish Airline to convey Mr. Kunle AbdulAzeez to Ukraine.

The officer added that the arrangement to compensate Abdul-Azeez with alternative ticket was put on hold after the visit of his uncle to Egypt Air office and after “ raising hell”, and threatened to take Egypt Air to court. Efforts to speak with Mr. Tony Nzan proved   abortive as he insisted that he has been made to write a report on what actually happened and this has been submitted to the General Manager who now has the authority to address the issue.

• NCAA begins investigation

The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA, has begun investigation into the matter. The authority is already in receipt of the official complaint lodged by Toju Gbenebichie, the uncle of Joshua. They have asked for the copies of the ticket, the boarding pass and other relevant documents that could help their case.

A letter signed by Abdulmalik Ifueko for the AGM Flight Operations/Adjudication Unit in the Consumer Protection Directorate yesterday confirmed this. A source said that among other things “tearing the Nigerian passport is a direct affront on the government and people of Nigeria and will be taken seriously depending on the outcome of the investigations.”