Festus Keyamo, the minister of aviation and aerospace development, has given Peter Obi, Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, a one-week ultimatum to publicly apologise to airport officials and pay a ₦25,000 fine over the wrongful parking of his vehicle at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.
Keyamo issued the directive in a statement on Friday after Obi alleged during a recent interview that his vehicle was unjustly clamped at the airport, suggesting he was being politically targeted by the Federal Government.
Rejecting the allegation, the minister said an internal investigation, backed by CCTV footage, established that Obi’s vehicle violated airport regulations by being left unattended in a restricted drop-off zone for about 30 minutes.
According to Keyamo, Obi arrived at the domestic terminal of the Abuja airport at about 8:28 p.m. on July 4 in a vehicle driven by a police officer. He said Obi and two other occupants entered the terminal, after which the driver also abandoned the vehicle in the drop-off area.
He explained that airport regulations require drivers to remain behind the wheel while in the designated drop-off zone, stressing that leaving a vehicle unattended in such an area constitutes a security risk under international aviation standards.
“The airport rule is that, apart from the fact that it is a drop-off zone, a driver must remain behind the wheel of the vehicle for it to be tolerated for some time within that zone,” Keyamo said.
The minister said airport security personnel clamped the vehicle only after confirming that no one was inside it, adding that officials had no knowledge the vehicle belonged to Obi.
He disclosed that when the police driver later discovered the clamp, he contacted Obi by phone, who subsequently spoke with the airport manager and requested the release of the vehicle without paying the prescribed penalty.
“The vehicle was released without him paying the necessary fine,” Keyamo stated.
Responding to Obi’s claim that other vehicles were similarly parked in the area, Keyamo described the explanation as “completely false” and unbefitting of someone aspiring to become Nigeria’s president.
He accused the former Anambra State governor of attempting to create a false narrative of political persecution over what he described as a straightforward violation of airport regulations.
“This is a clear case of an opposition figure trying to whip up unnecessary sentiments over a wrong committed by his driver,” the minister said.
Keyamo demanded that Obi tender an unreserved public apology to airport workers whom he said were unfairly portrayed as persecutors while carrying out their lawful duties.
He also asked the former governor to voluntarily return to the airport and pay the ₦25,000 fine for wrongful parking.
The minister warned that if Obi failed to meet both demands within one week, he would direct the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) to commence appropriate enforcement action.
“I have attached the CCTV footage to this statement for the public to clearly see what transpired,” Keyamo added.
