Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, has criticized the arraignment and remand of Comfort Emmanson, a female traveler on the Ibom Air flight from Uyo, the capital of Akwa Ibom State, to Lagos. Emmanson was charged with assault and disruptive behavior.
While her treatment of the airline’s employees should not be tolerated, Obi stated in a statement published on his official X handle that justice must be impartial, equitable, and fair.
“It is unacceptable that she was hurriedly taken to court and remanded, while someone who visibly held a plane from taking off and put hundreds of lives at risk is still at large, with government agencies and some state officials speaking up for him to be forgiven,” the former governor of Anambra said in a subtle allusion to the incident involving a Fuji artist, Wasiu Ayinde, also known as K1 De Ultimate, at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja last week.
“This case is not just about one young woman; it is about the double standards that poison our justice system. Justice in Nigeria must never be about who is poor or powerless versus who has influence or access to government officials.
“While Ms. Comfort Emmanson is in jail, the other offender who committed a more severe offence has not been held to the same standard. He has neither been arrested nor arraigned in any court.
“We must build a country where justice is fair, equal, and not selective, especially against women who are seen to be weaker.”
Additionally, he denounced the “dehumanizing” treatment she received.
In addition to being needless, the former governor said, “stripping her publicly represents the height of rascality and abuse by our agencies.”
He asserts that the woman’s crime is not comparable to the crimes perpetrated on a daily basis by those who pose as “excellencies” while “looting public funds” with no repercussions and who have not been dehumanized or stripped in the name of justice.
Emmanson, who allegedly attacked airline officials on the Ibom Air flight, was given a life ban by Nigerian airline operators on Monday.
In a statement released on Monday by its spokesperson, Obiora Okonkwo, the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) stated that Emmanson’s life ban from traveling domestically or abroad with any AON member is effective immediately.
Additionally, it stated that anyone who continued to act in such a manner would face the same penalties.
