The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority has summoned 13 domestic airlines to an emergency meeting over the growing number of flight delays, cancellations and affecting passengers across the country.

The meeting, scheduled for Wednesday at the NCAA headquarters in Abuja, was confirmed by the agency’s Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, Michael Achimugu, via his X handle on Tuesday.

This intervention comes amid rising complaints from air travelers and a series of incidents involving unruly passenger behavior at airports, a trend NCAA attributes partly to poor airline adherence to aviation rules.

In recent times, violent acts have become prominent in Nigerian airport incidents that were caused by different reasons.

While some unruly behaviours were caused by passengers’ ignorance of aviation rules, some were a result of airlines’ deliberate moves to circumvent regulations and deprive passengers of their rights.

Achimugu disclosed that the meeting would address a range of critical issues, including persistent flight delays and cancellations, Passenger handling protocols and welfare obligations, unresolved refund and compensation complaints, enforcement of safety measures like the phone switch-off directive, protection for cabin crew and NCAA officials, and the Introduction of RFID baggage tagging and real-time flight monitoring technology.

This comes barely 24 hours after the NCAA emphasised that airlines must uphold the Nigerian Civil Aviation Regulations, particularly Part 19, which outlines specific obligations to passengers in the event of delays or cancellations, including providing hotel accommodations for stranded travelers between 10:00pm and 4:00am.

The regulatory body stated its readiness to begin “naming and shaming” airlines that consistently flout aviation rules particularly those that delay or cancel flights without due process or passenger support.

Achimugu noted that airlines cancel flights late at night without making provisions for passenger welfare, leaving NCAA consumer protection officers to manage agitated travelers. This, he said, exposes officials to unnecessary risk.

He warned that the era of leniency is over, stating, “For infractions that are sanctionable, the Authority will apply the fullest measures possible. We will not abandon the letters of our regulations.”

Achimugu, however, reiterated that while the NCAA acknowledges the challenges faced by domestic carriers, operators must meet the expected standards if they wish to be regarded as world-class.

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A survivor of the 2014 Chibok school abduction by dreaded Boko Haram terrorists, Mary Katambi, has emerged winner of the Sought After School of Innovation & Entrepreneurship (SASIE) Idea to Venture pitch finale with her startup, Kaiki, an online marketplace for sustainable fashion and household items.

Katambi, who turned her harrowing past into a story of innovation, said her mission was to use Kaiki to promote recycling and sustainable living while empowering communities.

Speaking after her win, Katambi expressed gratitude for the opportunity, noting that the programme had given her the tools and confidence to transform her vision into a business.

Also recognised at the event was Dr. Irene Udebuana, founder of Robotprof, a climate-tech education initiative equipping children aged 7–16 with skills in coding, robotics, and green technology. The initiative aims to prepare the next generation for a more sustainable future.

Founder of SASIE, Dr. Jennifer D. Daniel, praised the winners as examples of the powerful role women are playing in Africa’s technology and innovation ecosystem.

“Mary and Irene embody exactly why SASIE exists: to unlock bold ideas and build powerful women-led ventures across the continent,” Daniel said.

The two winners will each receive a founder’s grant, mentorship, and the opportunity to apply as pioneer ventures to the Eunoia VC incubator. They will also gain media exposure, including a feature on Women Radio 91.7’s Startup Sisi programme.

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A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Joe Igbokwe, has urged activist Omoyele Sowore to withdraw his comment describing President Bola Tinubu as a criminal.

Speaking via a post shared on 𝕏, Igbokwe expressed shock that Sowore would call a sitting President a criminal.

He advised the former presidential candidate to apologise to Tinubu and Nigerians who elected him into power.

Igbokwe argued that nobody living or dead in Nigeria has touched lives like Tinubu has in the last 30 years.

He wrote: “I got to know Sowore through my good friend Mr Peter Claver. Both of them graduated from the University of Lagos. We have been friends for years and we have reasoned together and interacted for years.

“However I was stunned into disbelief and in total shock when he called a seating President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, PBAT a criminal.

“I advised him to withdraw the shameful scurrilous drivels and apologize to the President. Up till now he has not found the need to apologize to the President and Nigerians who elected him as president.

“PBAT is not his mate. The President is an international Chattered Accountant, an international scholar in the best tradition, former Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, former Governor of Nigeria’s economic nerve center called Lagos State for 8 yrs, and now the President of Nigeria, the biggest, the most populated country in Africa and the most endowed.

“Nobody body living or dead in Nigeria has touched lives across Nigeria the way PBAT has done in the past 30 years. Go and verify. Go and ask questions. Go and do due diligence.

“Apart from being the President of UNILAG Student Union I have not recorded any significant progress since he left Akoka apart from Aluta Continua business and life on the streets. He moves from police station to another, from one court to another, from one detention camp to another and nothing more.

“He has become Mr Protester of Nigeria while his American wife is slaving in USA with the Children. Sowore cannot continue to waste his precious gift of life on the streets on acrimony and division.

“These activities are getting diminished everyday and does not make sense to people like us again. He has been playing a dangerous game, he is becoming too arrogant and at best silly. I urge my friend Sowore to rethink and stop this walk on the streets that has become irrelevant and at best a non event.

“When you call a President we all elected a criminal it is at once telling us that 200 millions are criminals. This is unacceptable. It is unbelievable.

“It is a joke taking to a frightening dimension. It is kindergarten and at best horrible. I have asked you as a friend to retract this nonsensical effusions and openly apologize to the President and Nigerians. This is our irreducible minimum demand. Let the world know I have advised Sowore as a friend.”

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