By Atoyebi Nike
Ibom Air has denied responsibility for the release of a viral video showing a passenger in a state of indecent exposure during an altercation aboard one of its flights.
The airline’s Group Manager for Marketing and Communications, Aniekan Essienette, told TVC News on Monday that while the incident happened on one of their aircraft, the footage was not shared by any Ibom Air staff.
Minister of Aviation Festus Keyamo had earlier ordered sanctions against any employee found to have leaked the video, stressing that while filming for legal evidence was acceptable, making such footage public was “totally unacceptable.”
Essienette explained that the area where the recording was made included several individuals who were not airline employees.
“As much as the video was taken on board, we had several other people who were not Ibom Air employees around the vicinity. So, anyone could have taken that video,” she said.
“I can tell you categorically that the video was not released by us. We do not condone such indecent exposure, so we would not have been the ones to release it.”
According to her, the passenger in question was removed after resisting instructions to disembark. “Our crew had to restrain her briefly so security could escort her directly off the plane,” she added.
On growing incidents of unruly passengers, Essienette said no airline aims to humiliate travelers and urged authorities to focus on preventing similar disruptions in the future.
