The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has publicly condemned Qatar Airways for its treatment of a Nigerian passenger, who was detained for 18 hours in Doha, forced to sign a document written in Arabic, and made to pay a hefty fine to secure his release.
The incident was revealed by the NCAA’s Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, Michael Achimugu, in an official statement.
According to the authority, the ordeal began during boarding for a flight from Lagos to the United States via Doha. A crew member accused the Nigerian passenger of inappropriately touching her while he was wheeling a passenger.
The accusation was reported when the flight landed in Doha, leading to the man’s immediate arrest and detention.
Achimugu detailed that the passenger was held for 18 hours. “During the period, his wife suffered mental, physical, and psychological trauma without any form of care,” he stated. He added that the passenger’s wife found the accusation difficult to believe, “given that she was with him throughout the boarding process.”
To regain his freedom and continue his journey, the authorities forced the man to pay a substantial fine and sign a document written in Arabic, a language he does not understand. Despite this, Qatar Airways refused to allow him to continue on their flight to the United States, forcing him to purchase a new ticket with another airline to reach his destination.
The NCAA stated that it summoned the country manager of Qatar Airways in Nigeria to address the serious complaint. However, the manager did not attend the meeting. “Upon invitation by the NCAA, the airline’s country manager, who has a penchant for evading meetings with the NCAA, only sent his subordinates to attend,” Achimugu said.
Following the meeting, the authority made several determinations regarding the case. “As has become typical of @qatarairways, they failed to comply with all determinations made from that meeting,” the NCAA director asserted. He further accused the airline of ignoring subsequent passenger complaints and showing “total silence upon receipt of a letter of investigation (LOI) sent to them by the NCAA.”
The NCAA emphasised that this type of treatment is unacceptable and constitutes a clear violation of international aviation regulations and consumer rights. Achimugu firmly stated, “This is not a situation that we would accept here. It is against the law for ANY airline not to respond to the NCAA. It is against the law to provide false information to the NCAA. It is against the law to fail to comply with the provisions of Part 19 of the NCAA Regulations 2023.”
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