The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority has vowed to sanction Qatar Airways for allegedly violating the rights of Nigerian passengers.
The Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection at NCAA, Michael Achimugu, made this known in a statement shared on his verified X handle on Friday.
He explained that Qatar Airways had failed to comply with consumer protection rules outlined in Part 19 of the NCAA Regulations 2023.
Achimugu recounted a recent case involving a Nigerian passenger accused of sexual harassment by a member of Qatar Airways’ cabin crew during boarding in Lagos for a flight to the United States via Doha.
According to him, the crew member failed to report the allegation in Lagos but instead raised it in Doha, where the passenger was arrested, detained for 18 hours, fined, and forced to sign a document written entirely in Arabic.
The airline also refused to allow the passenger to continue his journey, leaving him to buy another ticket at great financial and reputational cost.
He added that Royal Air Maroc and Saudi Air had also been cautioned for similar offences and could face heavy sanctions if they continued to disregard NCAA directives.
“The airline has carried on as though Nigerian passengers and the NCAA are not deserving of their respect, dignified treatment, and compliance with Part 19 of the NCAA Regulations 2023. This will be brought to a stop immediately.
“A member of this airline’s cabin crew claimed that, while she was wheeling a passenger during boarding for a flight from Lagos to the US via Doha, a male passenger who was travelling with his wife had touched her butt. She did not report this incident in Lagos. On arrival in Doha, she made an allegation against this passenger, leading to his arrest and detention for about eighteen hours,” the statement said.
