Human rights activist Aisha Yesufu has criticised the treatment of Comfort Emmanson, the unruly Ibom Air passenger who was forcibly removed from a flight and later remanded in prison, describing it as a case of “selective justice.”
Emmanson was filmed being bundled and dragged out of an Ibom Air plane on August 10 after allegedly refusing to switch off her phone, attacking a crew member, and attempting to use a fire extinguisher as a weapon. The incident led to her indefinite ban by Ibom Air, her placement on a lifetime no-fly list by the Airline Operators of Nigeria, and her remand in Kirikiri Correctional Centre.
In a video posted on her 𝕏 account, Yesufu compared the incident to past cases involving Fuji star Wasiu Ayinde Marshal (KWAM 1) and former Edo State Governor Adams Oshiomhole, both linked to airline-related controversies but neither subjected to public manhandling or detention.
“Why didn’t you drag King Wasiu Ayinde out of the aircraft like that? Why didn’t they bundle Senator Adams Oshiomhole and drag him on the floor?” Yesufu asked.
She condemned the way Emmanson was restrained, alleging her dress was torn during the struggle, exposing her breasts.
“That is sexual harassment… She will forever live with the fact that her body part is now all out on display,” she said, questioning whether security agents were properly trained to handle such incidents with dignity.
Yesufu stressed that her objection was not to the charges against Emmanson, but to the unequal application of the law.
“We cannot have a nation where we have two justice systems… The reason it is the rule of law is that it applies to everybody, not just some people,” she stated, adding, “Selective justice is actually injustice.”
