Fearful Of Road Travel, Reps Stranded In Kano As Azman Airline Aborts Flight

Unwilling to travel the 444 kilometers by road from Kano to Abuja, members of the House of Representatives were on Wednesday left stranded at the Kano International Airport by Azman Airline following the unceremonious cancellation of their flight.

The House members were forced to sleepover in Kano as the Azman officials allegedly absconded from the airport.

The lawmakers boarded Azman Airline for an official assignment with House Committee on Petroleum Resources (Upstream) and Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF) and waited for hours unattended to for a flight that was scheduled to take off at 12:30 pm as the airline kept shifting the take-off time for over 12 hours.

Daily Trust gathered the flight was reportedly delayed from 12:30 pm till 2:30 pm, then till 6 pm.

The flight time was again moved to 9:45 pm, after which the lawmakers were told that they would leave at 12:15 am on Thursday.

Officials of the airline were said to have failed to address the passengers on the cause of the delay.

Speaking on the matter, the House’s spokesman, Hon. Benjamin Kalu, who was among the stranded passengers, expressed worry that airline operators, especially Azman Airlines have resolved to treat Nigerians without respect.

He said such was against the consumer protection law of the country, adding that if a passenger is delayed for two hours, the operators should reach out to their passengers.

He said: “It is important the people we represent know where we are and the National Assembly knows we are still stranded here and as we speak to you, nobody is at the counter to address us, not even the manager,” he said after the Azman Airline flight from Kano was cancelled.

Representative Kalu, who spoke on behalf of the lawmakers, expressed concern that this is what the ordinary Nigerians pass through on a daily basis while travelling.

“We just came out to see the manager and other members are still inside.

“In the hall, a lot of Nigerians were left stranded; there are other Nigerians who are stranded and we are witnessing this firsthand and we are feeling it. Some of the citizens were abandoned here.

“We are raising this call for common Nigerians; sometimes when citizens bring their complaints it appears as if they fabricated it.

“But this one we are involved and we are seeing this for ourselves,” the House’s spokesman noted.

“We have shown interest to find out from the Ministry of Aviation and Consumer Protection Council what is happening to the Aviation sector as soon as we return,” he added.

 GreenWhiteGreen GWG reports that the elite class who are able to afford it now travel only by air between places in Nigeria largely on account of the banditry and bad roads in many places in the country and most especially in the North.

The lawmakers’ unwillingness to travel would also have been informed by the fact that a first-class emir in Zamfara State was penultimate Wednesday, September 15 kidnapped by bandits along the Abuja – Kaduna highway. No word has been heard of his fate.

Source: Daily Trust

Send Us A Press Statement Advertise With Us Contact Us

 And For More Nigerian News Visit GWG.NG