A flight company, Executive Jet Services, has referred to musician, Naira Marley, whose real name is Azeez Fashola, and ex-Big Brother Naija housemate, Kim Oprah, with real name Chinonso Opara, among others as “a bunch of useless people”.
The singer alongside Kim Oprah and eight others boarded the company’s flight over the weekend to Abuja in violation of travel ban which resulted in the suspension of the firm’s licence by the Federal Government on Monday.
Chairman/CEO of the company, Sam Iwuajoku, wrote in a letter dated June 15 and addressed to the Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, to apologise for the violation, saying he thought the flight was booked for the Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola.
“Please the flight was to carry a judge to Abuja on Sunday 14th, 2020 as requested and permit was granted based on the application, but unfortunately when I called the judge on Saturday morning to inform him that we have the permit, he then said that he has reached Abuja already with a different flight that someone gave him a lift to Abuja,” the letter read.
“So on Saturday morning 13th June, 2020 my staff called me that they have a charter flight to Abuja and that the passengers are already in the lounge. As a rule, passenger manifest is always sent to me before any departure, when I went through the manifest and I saw Fashola Babatunde I thought it was the Honourable Minister of works going to Abuja with his men, so we decided to do the flight since it is a serving minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, I didn’t know that it was a bunch of useless people.”
The manifest dated June 13 and made available to reporters has the following names: Adewunmi Segun, Chinonso Opara, Fashola Babatunde, Fashola Adeshina and Adeyeye Tobi.
Others are Michael Opeyemi, Idowu Emmanuel, Seyi Awonuga, Wisdom Intoto and Abayomi Akin.
Sirika had said on Monday that the company would also be fined and that the flight captain would be sanctioned for providing false information.
