When the rule of law bows before celebrity, the skies grow dark. Last week, Chief Wasiu Ayinde Marshall aka Kwam1, turned Abuja’s Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport into his personal stage, blocking a ValueJet aircraft in conduct tantamount to attempted hijacking. For this, Aviation Minister Festus Keyamo’s grand solution was to place him on a “No-Fly List” pending investigations; a gesture so limp, it flutters like a torn windsock in a hurricane. Compare this to the case of Comfort Emmanson, a regular passenger on an Ibom Air flight who assaulted crew members, attacked security personnel, and even tried to seize a fire extinguisher. Within days, she was charged, arraigned, and remanded at Kirikiri prison. No celebrity privilege. No ministerial poetry. No trial by Twitter. Just swift, lawful action.
The contrast is damning. Emmanson’s behavior, though unacceptable, occurred in-flight and was contained by security. Kwam1’s actions unfolded on the tarmac – Nigeria’s most sensitive aviation zone, where blocking an aircraft’s taxi path could have triggered a fatal disaster. When an aircraft’s path is blocked and hundreds of lives are held hostage on the altar of ego, the law must roar, not whimper. Under the NCAA Act 2022 and NCARs 2023, Kwam1’s offences carry huge fines up to life imprisonment. Yet instead of prosecution, we get political theatre. Kwam1’s insane actions, placing lives on the runway of calamity, was not a momentary lapse; it was a brazen assault on public safety. And such egregious behavior should be met by the iron fist of justice, not the feeble administrative wrist-slapping of a no-fly list. This is unworthy of a nation that claims it honors the rule of its own laws.
For the fearless lawyer that he once was, it is indeed pathetic that Keyamo, once a crusader for speaking truth to power, now plays the role of court jester, tossing out soundbites and sentimental caveats, calling Kwam1’s reckless actions a “temporary loss of sanity” as if public safety were a passing mood. His decision to put Kwam1 on a “No-Fly List” is neither punishment, nor justice; it is theatre for the cameras, a hollow gesture meant to placate public outrage without ruffling the silk of celebrity privilege. This is not leadership; it is gallery play, a pantomime in which Keyamo struts and frets upon the social media stage, full of noise and hashtags, signifying nothing. While Keyamo dallies in verbal acrobatics, the credibility of Nigeria’s skies buckles under the weight of international ridicule.
In point of fact, blocking a ValueJet aircraft, ignoring security protocols, delaying passengers, and subjecting them to a hostage-like situation, amounts to attempted hijacking; and crosses the threshold from celebrity tantrum to criminal sabotage. Airports are cathedrals of precision, not stages for celebrity tantrums. Every pilot, every crew member, every ground officer depends on a chain of discipline that is only as strong as the law that enforces it. By indulging Kwam1’s recklessness, Keyamo risks shattering that chain, and with it, Nigeria’s hard-won Grade A status. To reduce this to an aviation gossip item is to spit in the face of every passenger whose trust in the system is sacred, and amounts to scrawling graffiti over Nigeria’s obligations under Annex 17 of the Chicago Convention and the Montreal Convention.
Nigeria is a signatory to Annex 17 of the Chicago Convention and has codified these principles in its own statutes: the NCAA Act 2022 and NCARs 2023. The law is explicit: unlawful interference with an aircraft demands severe punishment, including life imprisonment, and uncompromising enforcement. Kwam 1 or whatever he calls himself, must be prosecuted under the full weight of these statutes, not excused behind the curtain of fame. Let us dismantle the hypocrisy: placing Kwam1 temporarily on a no-fly list while also suspending the pilot’s license is an admission of guilt without consequence. A gavel that does not fall is useless. This “loss of sanity” interpretation by Keyamo flirts with poetic indulgence, but fails miserably in logic. Safety isn’t rooted in celebrity theatrics; it’s enforced by deterrence, accountability, and the unwavering conviction that no one, regardless of stature, is above the law.
Our airports are not stages for star-studded tantrums; they are gateways of trust, safety, and honor. One man’s obstruction threatens our Grade A airspace status, endangers lives, and tarnishes Nigeria’s fragile credibility in global aviation. If foreign airlines begin to shun Nigerian skies because our celebrities can run roughshod over laws, the consequences will be devastating and far-reaching. Prosecution, not gentle reminders, is the only beacon that can reaffirm Nigeria’s commitment to safe and orderly skies. Kwam1’s apology, while theatrical, cannot erase the risk he created; and cannot blot the stain he left on a system built on protocols and precision.
By shielding Kwam1 ostensibly because he is a star, Keyamo exposes the whole nation to reputational and operational turbulence that no PR spin can smooth over. The message must therefore be heard loud and clear: no passenger, no celebrity, no VIP can delay justice on takeoff. Cease the indulgence. Launch the prosecution. Let this moment be a crucible – a point where Nigeria chooses law over leniency, accountability over adulation, and safety over spectacles. Only then can our aviation system rise from shame to safety; with no more runway left for reckless impunity. Justice is not a prop. Aviation safety is not a suggestion. Kwam1’s prosecution is not optional; it is a legal duty. To fail is to tell every would-be airport anarchist that Nigeria’s runways are fair game if you are famous enough. Keyamo must either enforce the law without fear or favor or accept his legacy as the minister who turned Nigerian airspace into a playground for the powerful and reckless. The gavel is waiting; the world is watching, and Nigerian skies will remember.
