Festus Keyamo, SAN, CON, FCIArb (UK)@fkeyamo
PETER OBI MUST APOLOGISE TO AIRPORT STAFF AND PAY THE FINE FOR WRONG PARKING
As the Minister of Aviation, I felt a moral duty to investigate and authenticate the claim made by opposition candidate, Mr. Peter Obi, a few days ago that the tyres of his car were ‘unjustly’ clamped at the airport, suggesting a ‘persecution agenda’ against him by the Federal Government. Politics aside, every Nigerian is entitled to fair treatment under the law.
I therefore instituted an internal inquiry over the issue.
Luckily enough, the entire Abuja airport is covered by CCTV cameras, real-time, 24/7. But apparently, this fact was unknown to Mr. Peter Obi. Otherwise, perhaps he would have been more circumspect before rushing to the media to cry ‘persecution’.
From the recordings, these are the facts:
1. On Saturday, July 4th, 2026, Mr. Obi arrived at the domestic wing of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport Abuja at exactly 20:28 pm, driven by a Policeman. He alighted with two other occupants and went into the terminal building.
2. The Police driver then parked the vehicle, almost blocking the entrance and came out himself and went into the terminal building too. The airport rule is that, apart from the fact that it is a drop-off zone, a driver must remain behind the wheels of the vehicle for it to be tolerated for some time within that zone. Still the vehicle tyres were not clamped.
3. The Policeman came back to the vehicle at about 20:32pm and collected something from the vehicle and went back into the building again, leaving the vehicle unattended to.
4. At this point, the dutiful airport security staff came over and clamped the tyres of the car. In doing this, contrary to the claims by Peter Obi, nobody was inside the car and so nobody knew whether it was his car (not that it should matter, anyway).
5. When the Policeman returned again and discovered the tyres were clamped, he was directed to an office and upon getting there, he called Mr. Peter Obi on his phone and gave the phone to the manager. Mr. Peter Obi then introduced himself and spoke with the manager, peddled his ‘influence’ and requested for the release of the vehicle. His vehicle was then released without him paying the necessary fine.
6. It is important to note that the time the vehicle was parked unattended to in that prohibited zone was about 30 minutes, which constitutes a security risk at an airport by global best practices.
What has emerged from this is a clear case of an opposition candidate trying to whip up unnecessary sentiments for a wrong he committed with his driver. The excuse which Mr. Peter Obi gave that there were other offenders too on that day (which is completely false) cannot be an excuse for an individual aspiring to be President of Nigeria. He must live above board.
This is a matter that was not even mentioned at all by the airport authorities and had been put to rest. But ever determined to milk any situation to score cheap political points, Mr. Peter Obi decided to go on air to render a false narrative.
Therefore, he must also face the consequences of his actions. (I have attached the CCTV footages to this statement for the public to clearly see what transpired.)
In the circumstances, consistent with the principle of equality before the law, as Minister of Aviation, I make the following demands on Mr. Peter Obi:
1. That he tenders an unreserved, public apology to those hardworking, ordinary Nigerian workers at the airport, just doing their jobs dutifully and whom he sought to blackmail as his ‘persecutors’.
2. That Mr. Peter Obi voluntarily goes back to the airport and pay the appropriate fine of N25,000 for wrongful parking at the airport for which he used ‘influence peddling’ to bully his way out on that day. He cannot be bigger than the law.
If these demands are not met within one week, I will be giving the necessary directives to the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) to take the next steps against him.
