A public interest lawyer, Ayodele Ademiluyi, has filed a ₦500 billion lawsuit at the Federal High Court in Lagos against the Federal Government, top aviation regulators, and music icon King Wasiu Ayinde Marshal (popularly known as KWAM 1), accusing them of breaching the rule of law in two separate aviation-related incidents.
The suit, marked FHC/L/CS/1632/25, names as respondents: the President of Nigeria, the Attorney-General of the Federation, Minister of Aviation Festus Keyamo (SAN), the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Ibom Air, ValueJet, the Nigerian Correctional Service, King Wasiu Ayinde, the Nigerian Police Force, the Governor of Akwa Ibom State, the state’s Attorney-General, and the Airline Operators of Nigeria.
Speaking at a Friday press conference, Ademiluyi, who also serves as convener of the Movement for Justice and Secretary of the Radical Gender Movement, said the case was not merely about the individuals involved, but about deeper institutional failures within Nigeria’s aviation and justice systems.
okay.ng reports that the dispute arose from alleged unequal treatment between KWAM 1 and another passenger, Comfort Emmanson, in separate aviation incidents. Ademiluyi alleged that while Emmanson faced immediate punitive measures, KWAM 1 escaped without arrest, arraignment, or prosecution.
“Our aviation system needs a complete overhaul. We cannot allow impunity to reign or degenerate into a banana republic where someone can stop a plane with their bare hands and walk away without consequence,” he said.
The lawyer expressed outrage over the fact that KWAM 1 was instead rewarded with a brand ambassadorship for the aviation sector, questioning the message it sends to the public.
“If someone can stop a plane with their bare hands and be appointed a brand ambassador, it sends the wrong signal,” Ademiluyi insisted.
He also accused Aviation Minister Festus Keyamo of taking sides and demanded that the court issue an order of mandamus compelling proper action against those involved, “particularly Mr. KWAM 1.”
“This is not about celebrity status or political connections — it’s about the sanctity of the rule of law,” he stressed.
Ademiluyi further criticised the Airline Operators of Nigeria’s role in the Emmanson case, calling it “overreaching” and reiterating that “Mr. Kwam 1 is walking the streets free. That is a big slap on the rule of law. The suit we have filed is a public interest action. The collective interest of the polity is at stake.”
He urged the judiciary to treat the case as a landmark opportunity to affirm that no one, no matter how prominent, is beyond legal accountability.
