By Ayo Kehinde
The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority has announced plans to blacklist Fuji musician, King Wasiu Ayinde Marshal, popularly known as K1 De Ultimate, from flying in the country for six months over his conduct at the domestic terminal of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.
NCAA’s Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, Michael Achimugu, disclosed this during a press briefing on Thursday, saying the agency was also writing to the Attorney-General of the Federation and the Inspector-General of Police to initiate legal proceedings against the musician.
“What I must assure the general public is that everybody involved in this will be brought to book. As we speak, the passenger is going to be blacklisted for the next six months from flying in Nigeria,” Achimugu stated.
He stressed that aviation regulations are designed for the safety and protection of all passengers and must be respected regardless of status.
The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria had earlier said K1 violated aviation rules by attempting to bring an unidentified liquid substance onboard a ValueJet flight headed to Lagos on August 5, despite multiple warnings from Aviation Security (AVSEC) personnel and the flight captain.
FAAN said the situation escalated when the musician spilled the contents on a security officer during a verification attempt.
The liquid was later confirmed to be alcohol, a violation of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Security Programme and ICAO Annex 17 regulations, which prohibit passengers from carrying liquids exceeding 100ml unless medically justified.
In a statement on Thursday, K1 denied the allegation, claiming the liquid was “plain drinking water” provided at the airport lounge while awaiting boarding.
He described the reports as exaggerated and misleading.
Meanwhile, the NCAA has suspended two ValueJet pilots involved in a separate safety breach at the same airport, revealing that preliminary investigations showed the crew-initiated departure procedures without obtaining mandatory pre-departure clearance.
