KWAM1 vs Ms. Comfort Emmanson: Raising Issues Above Personalities

Remi Ladigbolu/

Two airport scenes this month have set off a national debate about safety, dignity, and even double standards.

One involved Fuji star King Wasiu Ayinde Marshal (KWAM1) earlier in the month. The other, on August 11, 2025, involved Ms. Comfort Emmanson on an Ibom Air Uyo–Lagos flight. The headlines, the videos, the online anger — all of it risks drowning out a more useful conversation about how aviation rules are applied and where the system needs repair.

At the centre of the debate are three facts that matter most. First: where an incident happens — inside the aircraft, on the tarmac, or in the terminal — changes both the immediate risk and the lawful response. Second: what the passenger actually did, and what video evidence shows, determines whether restraint or on-the-spot arrest is justified. Third: how well the airline, captain, and aviation security coordinate can change the course of a confrontation between calm resolution and chaotic escalation.

Ms. Emmanson’s incident unfolded on August 11, 2025. Reports say she refused a crew instruction to switch off a mobile phone during take-off procedures. The matter escalated: upon arrival in Lagos she allegedly attacked a purser, ripped off her wig, slapped crew, and tried to remove a fire extinguisher — an act that, if true, threatens flight safety.

Video of the assault circulated quickly and spurred immediate security action. According to authorities, she was restrained, taken into custody, arraigned at the Ikeja Magistrates’ Court, and remanded at Kirikiri prison after failing to meet bail conditions.

KWAM1’s episode occurred earlier in August and played out differently. Accounts show the confrontation moved from the lounge onto the tarmac during boarding. Viral clips available to the public show him standing at the foot of the aircraft and physically preventing the plane from taxiing. There is no publicly available footage showing him assaulting crew or ground staff, nor footage of anyone physically restraining him. That difference in what the recordings show, and the fact the events were on the tarmac rather than inside the cabin, helps explain why he was not immediately arrested and arraigned in the same way Ms. Emmanson was.

International and Nigerian rules give the captain, crew, and security services authority to prevent a clear, immediate danger to flight safety. ICAO guidance (notably the security standards in Annex 17 and the related Tokyo Convention principles on jurisdiction and crew authority) and Nigeria’s Civil Aviation Act 2022 and Civil Aviation Regulations (NCARs, Part 20 and related provisions) treat actions such as assaulting crew or tampering with safety equipment as serious offences. Attempting to remove a fire extinguisher, for example, is not a minor infraction. It is conduct that may be criminal under the Civil Aviation Act and which poses a direct risk to the aircraft and passengers.

That legal framework also explains the general rule: if an unruly passenger presents an active threat, the safer option is to keep that person under control on board until handover to law enforcement is possible. Letting someone freely leave the secure area when the threat is unresolved risks escape, interference with investigations, and potential further harm. This is why ICAO manuals and Nigeria’s NCASP favour controlled handover at the gate rather than unsupervised disembarkation.

But rules assume coordination works and that is where things often break down. In KWAM1’s case, the episode on the tarmac and during boarding exposed gaps: a short but critical delay in security response and unclear handover decisions. That gap allowed the situation to play out without the immediate physical restraint seen in Ms. Emmanson’s case. In Ms. Emmanson’s case the reported tampering with a fire extinguisher and the video of her striking crew justified an urgent intervention under aviation safety rules. Had security been ready earlier in the KWAM1 case, it is possible the outcome would have looked different — perhaps an immediate arrest at the gate rather than a contested ground scuffle. Still, the absence of footage of assault in KWAM1’s case and the fact the action occurred outside the pressurised cabin reduced the immediate legal basis for forceful on-the-spot arrest.

It is important to be clear about the legal outcomes and what they signify. Ms. Emmanson’s detention and arraignment were routine and administrative enforcement of aviation safety laws, not necessarily an act of personal retaliation. She was remanded because she could not meet sureties at the time; had she met the bail conditions, she likely would have been released the same day. In other words, the custody was procedural pending the court’s bail decision rather than an automatic heavy-handed sentence.

Similarly, if KWAM1 had been arrested and arraigned immediately, it is likely — given his profile and the non-violent nature of the publicly visible actions — that he would have been granted bail on self-recognisance. That observation is made without prejudice to the separate and important point that his initial non-arraignment should not be read as immunity. Regulatory and criminal proceedings can follow after the fact; not being arrested on the spot does not mean there will be no consequences. Aviation regulators retain the power to investigate, fine, and impose travel restrictions under NCARs and the Civil Aviation Act, and law enforcement can act on evidence that emerges later.

Transparency and context are essential. Michael Achimugu of the NCAA has invited passengers who were on Ms. Emmanson’s flight to come forward by emailing him (michael.achimugu@ncaa.gov.ng). That request matters for several reasons. First, video clips rarely capture everything, such as the moments that led up to the confrontations and the precise words exchanged. Also the sequence of attempts to de-escalate are often missing. Second, balanced eyewitness testimony helps investigators reconstruct the full picture and prevents the rush to judgment that social media often provokes. Third, careful corroboration of accounts and evidence is the best path to fair enforcement and public confidence. Achimugu’s outreach is therefore a crucial step toward an accountable, transparent inquiry.

Media scholar, Folorunsho Fatai Adisa’s 2024 account of boarding-gate pressure, in which he calmly paid under protest, documented the issue, and pursued formal complaint, offers a useful reminder that confrontation and emotional outbursts almost never lead to the best outcomes. Both KWAM1 and Ms. Emmanson might have reduced harm to themselves and others by prioritising evidence and formal complaints early, where feasible. There are moments when safety requires immediate action; there are also moments where restraint and documentation produce better outcomes for the complainant and the public interest.

Recent developments show the government is aware of systemic issues. Aviation Minister, Festus Keyamo, has announced that an urgent security meeting involving all key stakeholders will be convened next week to address identified gaps in incident response, coordination, and passenger management protocols. The outcome of that meeting could shape the reforms needed to prevent similar controversies in future.

Legal precedent exists for both strands of this debate. In Federal Republic of Nigeria v. Ijeoma Nwankwo (2017), the court upheld the immediate restraint and prosecution of a passenger who assaulted cabin crew mid-flight, affirming that crew authority under the Civil Aviation Act overrides passenger convenience where safety is threatened. By contrast, in R v. Franks [1993] 2 WLR 163 (UK), involving obstruction of an aircraft on the ground without assault, the court found that while the conduct was unlawful and disruptive, immediate custodial measures were not always necessary if the threat to airborne safety was absent — a distinction relevant to understanding the KWAM1 response.

These instruments and cases support two core legal principles: protect safety first, and enforce measures proportionately while respecting human dignity and the rule of law. Lawful restraint that prevents a genuine and immediate safety threat will normally be judged necessary and justified under both ICAO standards and Nigerian law. But even where restraint is justified, once the person is under control every reasonable step should be taken to restore that person’s dignity, including covering exposed parts, managing images, preserving privacy, and ensuring evidence is handled properly. Failure to protect dignity invites mistrust and can inflame public sentiment, even where the initial enforcement was lawful.

The political heat around both incidents is understandable. But the most useful public contribution is lifting the debate to the level of process by asking whether rules were followed, whether coordination failed, whether the response was proportionate, and whether rights were respected once safety was secured. Demanding answers to those questions gives the public clarity and pressure for reform without unfairly targeting individuals.

Practical reforms worth pressing for include better coordination between cockpit, airline operations and AVSEC to ensure swift handovers; clear, binding rules on handling and sharing viral footage by airline staff; mandatory retraining on de-escalation and dignity-preserving restraint; and transparent, independent fact-finding with public summaries that preserve privacy while explaining decisions.

These incidents are not simply about one passenger or one celebrity. They expose real gaps in coordination, evidence handling, and public communication. Ms. Emmanson’s detention was administrative and conditioned on bail; KWAM1’s earlier non-arraignment was driven by different operational facts and available evidence, not necessarily favouritism.

Both cases show the need for clear, consistent responses: swift action when safety is immediately threatened, quick restoration of dignity once control is achieved, and rigorous, transparent follow-up so no one is above the rules. If the focus remains on improving systems rather than stoking personalities, the result will be less injustice, calmer public discourse, and stronger safety for everyone who flies.

*Ladigbolu is a Lagos-based journalist

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