Sources at the airport said the senator blocked the entrance to the terminal entirely, refusing to budge despite multiple pleas from the terminal manager.

According to eyewitnesses, rather than accept responsibility for his lateness, the senator blocked the terminal’s entrance, creating a gridlock that left dozens of passengers stranded and delayed.

Sources said the terminal manager’s repeated efforts to resolve the disruption were met with obstinate refusal by Oshiomhole, forcing the regional manager to intervene.

A management meeting was hurriedly convened to pacify the senator and convince him to allow normal operations to resume.

Witnesses described the scene as chaotic and humiliating for airline and airport staff, who were seen pleading with the senator to de-escalate the situation.

Air Peace, the airline scheduled to fly the senator to Abuja, refused to accommodate him, citing his late arrival and adherence to strict check-in policies.

“He missed the flight. That’s the simple truth. He wanted them to delay the flight for him, but Air Peace refused,” a source familiar with the incident said.

“Oshiomhole blocked the terminal entrance completely until the regional manager came to resolve the issue. The terminal manager made all attempts to resolve it, but Oshiomhole rebuffed everything so he could not resolve the issue,” a source said.

“There was a management meeting called to beg Oshiomhole. He disrupted flights by shutting down the Zulu Terminal. The situation was so tense that a management meeting was hurriedly convened to plead with the senator to step aside so that operations could resume.”

Domestic airlines in Lagos operate from two main terminals: Murtala Mohammed 1 (MM1), also known as the General Aviation Terminal (GAT), and Murtala Mohammed 2 (MM2).

The General Aviation Terminal (GAT) has two sections—Alpha Hall and Zulu Hall.

The Zulu Terminal, formerly known as the old Ikeja Airport before it was relocated to the GAT after a fire incident in 2000, is the primary domestic wing of the MMIA.

It handles flights to key destinations across Nigeria, including Abuja, Benin, Asaba, Port Harcourt, Ilorin, Enugu, Calabar, Uyo, Owerri, and Yola.

In 2023, the federal government completed a N2.2 billion expansion of the terminal under the supervision of then Aviation Minister, Hadi Sirika, increasing its capacity fourfold—from 254 to 1,024 passengers.

Ijeoma Blessing Nwosu-Igbo, General Manager of Public Affairs at the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), said she was unaware of the incident, noting that MM2 is a privately owned terminal.

“I don’t work for MM2, I work for the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria. And I am not aware of this incident unless they reported it to us. I can’t speak for MM2,” she said.

Efforts by SaharaReporters to contact Air Peace spokesperson, Dr. Ejike Ndiulo, on his mobile phone were unsuccessful.

Similarly, attempts to reach Mr. Olatokunbo Arewa, Regional General Manager South-West for Murtala Muhammed International Airport, also failed. Although he asked our reporter to send a text message, he did not reply to it and did not answer follow-up calls.