The Consumer Protection Council has fixed April 17 as deadline for
explanation from Arik Airline on the alleged inhuman treatment of
passengers on its delayed New York bound flight WT3107.
The CPC Director General, Mrs Dupe Atoki, disclosed the deadline in an
interview with the News Agency of Nigeria on Tuesday in Abuja.
She said that the flight billed for March 31 was delayed for about one
hour and 30 minutes.
The Airline was reported to have kept the passengers of the flight onboard
for about one and half hours under suffocating condition due to the
breakdown of its air conditioner.
Atoki said the council would not rely on a publication to draw conclusion
on what had transpired, adding that she had demanded for a full brief of
the incident from the Airline.
She explained that the brief would enable the council to take an informed
decision on the case and further ensure that consumers got value for their
money.
According to her, the council has taken up the complaints of the affected
passengers and that the full brief from the Airline will enable it to take
an informed decision on the case.
“In its quest to ensure that consumers gets value for their money, the
council has written a letter directing Arik Airline to provide full report
on the case on or before April 17, 2014.
“We will not want to draw conclusions from media reports.
“The Arik Air flight WT3107 billed for Lagos to JFK New York was delayed
in Lagos from a scheduled departure time of 11.50pm till 1.20am on April
1, 2014 under suffocating condition.
“The suffocation resulted from the failure of the flight’s air conditioner
thereby leading to some passengers of the plane to remove their clothes
due to unbearable heat,” she said.
Atoki, however, expressed the determination of the council to ensure
adequate protection of the nation’s consumers of all products and services
in the country.
She said that providers of goods and services must exhibit best ethical
practise in all their interactions with consumers.