Air Peace has dismissed claims by the senator representing Edo North, Adams Oshiomhole, that he was extorted and unfairly denied boarding, stating that the former Edo State governor did not check in online as alleged and arrived late for his scheduled flight.

Speaking on Channels Television?s Politics Today on Monday, Air Peace?s Operations Manager, Ayodeji Adeyemi, rejected what he described as ?false allegations? made by the senator, suggesting they may have been motivated by personal reasons.

?Oshiomhole has made several allegations, and we stand by the fact that they are false. He came late for his flight ? that?s already been established, and he didn?t deny it. He came to the airport requesting to board when the flight had closed,? Adeyemi said.

Adeyemi challenged the senator?s claim of checking in online before his arrival, explaining that Air Peace?s backend systems reflect all online check-ins, which automatically generate a boarding pass with seat details.

?He never checked in online. He only tried to sway public opinion by showing his phone on TV. If he truly checked in online, he should produce the boarding pass issued to him. Till now, he has not done that.

?If you check in online, your name appears on our manifest and system. He wasn?t there. We couldn?t find him on our checked-in list,? Adeyemi stated.

Commenting on the timeline, Adeyemi noted, ?He came in after 6 am. Our check-in closes 45 minutes before departure ? that?s standard. The flight was for 6:30 am, and at the time he arrived, the door of the aircraft was already shut.?

Adeyemi also addressed the viral video showing an Air Peace staff speaking with Oshiomhole in a secluded part of the terminal.

?Nobody cornered him (Oshimhole). Given his status, the official only tried to explain that since he had missed the flight, the next one was at 8:30 am, and to board that, he would need to change his ticket and pay the appropriate fees,? he said.

?Standard Practice, Not Extortion?

On the senator?s allegations of extortion, the airline manager clarified, ?When you miss a flight, you?re charged a ?no-show? fee under standard aviation policies. If you select a new flight, you may also pay a fare difference depending on availability and demand. That?s not extortion ? it?s standard practice.?

He further pointed out that two of the women referenced by Oshiomhole as victims of the same situation were not on that specific flight.

Oshiomhole?s Claims

Meanwhile, appearing on Channels Television?s Sunday Politics, Senator Oshiomhole insisted he had checked in online the night before the flight and denied arriving late.

He said, ?My Air Peace ordeal symbolises Nigerians? frustration. This rift is not between me and Air Peace. No fair-minded person can say it is. It was institutional extortion. I refused to be taken care of. I had already checked in. I arrived between 6 am and five minutes past six. The purpose of checking in online is so that you don?t have to check in again.

?I insisted that checking me in was not a secret deal. Many of those who were there were denied boarding. They were asked to pay additional charges on the spot, different from what they had paid online.

?While the manager was trying to sort me out, I said, ?You don?t need to sort me out. Respect the rights of these people.? A woman who paid N146,000 was asked to pay N109,900 more in order to fly. For me, they were not going to take any extra money. I refused to be isolated. Why should I be excused??

The incident occurred last week at Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos, where Oshiomhole allegedly disrupted operations following his denied boarding.

Air Peace had issued a statement condemning what it called ?unruly conduct? and reaffirming its zero-tolerance stance on disruption. (Channels TV, but headline rejigged)

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