A passenger aboard an Ibom Air flight in the centre of a viral incident has given a first-hand account of what happened before the confrontation between a passenger, Comfort Emmanson, and a flight attendant escalated at the Lagos airport last Sunday.
Ogebe, who was on Channels TV this morning, said the airline hostess involved, threatened to deal with the female passenger during the flight. The eyewitness said he sat directly beside Emmanson and saw “everything that transpired” on the aircraft.
According to him, the first air hostess was professional and polite, briefing passengers on emergency exit procedures before asking Emmanson to switch off her phone.
Ogebe recounted that tension began when a second air hostess approached “with a posture that showed she came for trouble,” repeating the instruction to Emmanson to switch off her phone.
The eyewitness said Emmanson explained that the buttons on her phone were not working and asked for help, which the crew member declined.
Ogebe said that the back-and-forth between the two attracted another passenger who eventually helped Emmanson switch off the device.
Ogebe stressed that Emmanson never refused to comply, saying, “She was trying to switch off her phone (but) she had issues switching it off.”
He said the exchange escalated when the second air hostess allegedly warned, “If you say another word, I will deal with you,” prompting an angry reaction laced with expletives.
Throughout the flight, Ogebe said Emmanson appeared visibly upset, muttering that she was being singled out despite paying for her ticket. He claimed the second air hostess “kept peeping” to check on her, while the first remained “very polite, amiable and professional.”
“If this whole issue had been handled by the first air hostess, it would not have come up at all, but Emmanson’s reaction was completely not commensurate with the situation,” he said, describing her behaviour during the arrest as “extremely violent.”
On why he decided to speak out, Ogebe said the public narrative painted Emmanson as a “regular indisciplined Nigerian” refusing instructions. He insisted the second air hostess “needs training,” while the first “deserves an award” for professionalism.
Watch a video of him speaking below
