The Special Adviser to the Delta State Governor on Media, Success Ossai, explained why he offered a ₦500,000 monthly salary job to Comfort Emmason.
Naijaonpoint recalls that Emmason was on August 10th, removed from a flight from Lagos to Uyo after allegedly refusing to turn off her phone as instructed by crew members.
The situation escalated when she became physically aggressive, struck a flight attendant, and had to be restrained and escorted off the aircraft at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport.
Following that, Ibom Air imposed a lifetime ban on her, while she was also arraigned and remanded in the Kirikiri Correctional Centre.
However, she was later released after the intervention of the Minister of Aviation, Festus Keyamo (SAN).
Following her release, Ossai, in an Instagram post on Wednesday, announced that a monthly salary of ₦500,000 had been secured for the female passenger in the state.
The package, according to Ossai, also includes flight tickets, accommodation in a five-star hotel, a guided tour, and a ticket to the Delta Social Media Summit scheduled for August 28 in Asaba.
Speaking in an interview with The PUNCH, Ossai clarified that the gesture was not from the state government but a personal decision to help Emmason reintegrate into society.
Dismissing speculations of having a romantic interest in Comfort, the governor’s aide said, “I’m a married man and a faithful man. I can never get myself involved with such a thing. I am just offering harmless assistance to her.
“The gesture shown to the passenger wasn’t from the state government. It’s my personal gesture. She has shown remorse for what she did. Whatever has happened has happened. She went to Kirikiri prison and came back. It is time to support her as well.”
He also dismissed criticisms that his offer could encourage unruly behaviour among air passengers.
On why he extended the offer despite Emmason not being from Delta State, Ossai said, “In Delta State, we don’t discriminate. We offer help to people, whether you are from Delta State or not. We are first Nigerians before anything else.”
Meanwhile, a public interest lawyer, Ayodele Ademiluyi, has instituted a ₦500 billion suit against the Federal Government, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, and other parties at the Federal High Court in Lagos.
Ademiluyi accused them of grossly violating the rule of law in the handling of the two aviation incidents.
The case, marked FHC/L/CS/1632/25, named as respondents: the President of Nigeria, the Attorney-General of the Federation, Minister of Aviation, Festus Keyamo (SAN), NCAA, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, Ibom Air, ValueJet, the Nigerian Correctional Service, King Wasiu Ayinde, the Nigerian Police Force, the Governor of Akwa Ibom State, the state’s Attorney-General, and the Airline Operators of Nigeria.
Speaking to journalists on Friday, Ademiluyi, said the legal action was aimed at defending public interest and holding aviation stakeholders accountable, stressing that the dispute goes beyond the individuals involved, exposing deeper institutional weaknesses.
He said: “Our aviation system needs a complete overhauling. We cannot allow impunity to reign or degenerate into a banana republic where someone can stop a plane with their bare hands and walk away without consequence. It’s a gross imbalance. There was no arrest, no arraignment, no prosecution of Mr. KWAM 1.
“In fact, he was rewarded with a brand ambassadorship for the aviation sector. What message does that send to the public?”
Ademiluyi insisted that rewarding the musician with an ambassadorial role was inappropriate, noting that, “If someone can stop a plane with their bare hands and be appointed a brand ambassador, it sends the wrong signal.”
While accusing the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Keyamo, of taking sides, the lawyer criticised the Airline Operators of Nigeria’s handling of the Emmason matter.
He described their role as overreaching, saying, “The central issue remains: Mr. Kwam 1 is walking the streets free. That is a big slap on the rule of law. The suit we have filed is a public interest action. The collective interest of the polity is at stake.”
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