Former Edo State Governor Adams Oshiomhole has detailed a disturbing incident at Lagos’ Murtala Muhammed Airport where he and dozens of passengers were denied boarding an Air Peace flight despite completing online check-in, while the airline allegedly resold seats at inflated prices.
The senator told Vanguard how the 6:30 a.m. Abuja-bound flight became the center of chaos: “I booked Air Peace… They delayed the flight for over five hours. In the end, they announced a cancellation. I had to get another ticket.”
Having experienced previous issues, Oshiomhole emphasized he completed online check-in for Wednesday’s flight along with two Ghanaian associates.
Arriving at 6:05 a.m., Oshiomhole was shocked when staff refused him boarding: “I showed them the evidence of my online check-in… Meanwhile, I noticed they were still taking other people in.” The senator questioned the airline’s logic: “How can you close boarding for a 6:30 flight at 6:05? What is the purpose of online check-in, then?”
The situation escalated when Oshiomhole observed systemic exploitation: “Basically, they were selling tickets on the spot at higher prices.”
He cited a nursing mother’s ordeal – after purchasing a N146,000 ticket and arriving before 6:00 a.m., she was told the flight was “full” while new tickets sold for N200,000-N300,000.
“To take advantage of the situation, they discouraged those who had bought tickets online at lower rates and sold to people willing to pay more,” Oshiomhole alleged. When security personnel intervened, the airline offered the woman the next flight – at an additional N109,100. “Meaning she would spend about N256,000 for a one-hour flight to Abuja.”
The senator personally intervened: “I had to send that woman N500,000. That’s basically what happened.” He condemned the predatory practice, noting how stranded passengers protested: “People around said, ‘Comrade, please don’t leave – this is how they’ve been treating us.'”
Oshiomhole challenged aviation authorities to act: “You cannot continue like this. Tomorrow, everyone will blame the government. You have regulatory agencies, and they are all compromising.”
His account reveals what appears to be a coordinated scheme where early arrivals with confirmed bookings are systematically denied boarding to create artificial scarcity and justify price gouging.
