THE KID WONDER WHO FLEW IN A PLANE TYRE HOLE FROM BENIN TO LAGOS

He probably had been dreaming of a better life abroad. Scenes from foreign films and stories told by those, who have been ‘privileged’ to travel to countries like the United States of America (USA), Britain, Germany, and Switzerland usually elicit anxiety from those, who have not had the ‘opportunity’ and such could lead one to go to any extent to achieve his aim.

So, when last week news broke that a teenage boy, Daniel Ihekina beat airline and airport security at the Benin Airport and sneaked into the tyre compartment of a Lagos-bound Arik plane, where he flew safely to the Murtala Muhammed Airport in Lagos on the morning of Saturday, August 24^th, 2013, not a few people were surprised that such could ever happen.

There was pandemonium at the airside of the Lagos airport when passengers disembarking from the aircraft saw the teenager as he emerged from the undercarriage (aircraft tyre hole) to join his "fellow" travellers.

The 15-year old stowaway was immediately arrested by security officials at the airport, the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria.

The boy, who has since turned celebrity, entered the Guinness Book of Records as the first person to toy with such a risk. Reports had it that the poor boy thought the aircraft was heading for the United States of America (USA) or the United Kingdom, where he looked forward to a better life. But this was not to be as Daniel found himself in Nigeria to continue with what he had wanted to escape from. But, observers believe his life will not remain the same as he would serve as a reference point to daring adventures and ‘a proof of porous security system in our airports, seaports and borders.’

“From what we heard, the boy said he was being maltreated and tried to escape from his parents. He thought he was on his way to the US. The parents have traveled to Lagos by road to get him back,” a source at the Benin Airport disclosed last week Sunday.

Although the General Manager, Corporate Communications, FAAN, Mr. Yakubu Dati, said full and urgent investigation had commenced into the mysterious circumstances that led to the huge breach in airport and airline security, the situation has continued to beat the imagination of aviation authorities in the country.
The situation, which has become a major source of worry among the authorities, has also led to a blame game between FAAN and Arik.

FAAN, in a statement last week Saturday, said it held “Arik Air liable for the circumstances leading to the stowaway of a teenage boy on its aircraft at the Benin Airport. Arik Air acted with impunity by not stopping the aircraft to check when the crew and ground personnel’s attention was drawn to an abnormality on the tarmac.”
According to the FAAN spokesman, the procedure for such infraction is for the crew to abort the flight and return to the apron for check-up.
He blamed the airline for the alleged impunity, warning that the airport authority would not tolerate such infraction from any operator.
The teenage boy is already giving useful information to unravel this ‘misnomer.’
In a swift reaction, Arik, blamed FAAN for the huge breach in security, noting that the incessant cases of security breaches at the nation’s airport had become a major source of concern to the airline.

The statement by Arik’s Managing Director, Mr. Chris Ndulue, said:

“We are worried by the incessant security lapses at our airports. We are appealing to the management of FAAN to immediately address the problem.
“The management of Arik Air has expressed shock over the incident, wondering how the teenager beat the aviation security personnel at the Benin Airport to get to the runway.”
Arik said its pilot had reported to the control tower the presence of a strange boy in the bush about 200 – 300 metres at the end of runway before leaving the airport.

Ndulue said the control tower had told its pilot that they were sending security men to the place to arrest the boy but nothing was done.

It was however gathered that the Governor of Osun State, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola has offered to give the boy scholarship to university level to achieve his dream of becoming somebody in life and ‘have the opportunity of traveling abroad to enjoy better life.’

The group called De Raufs' Volunteer Group - a group of supporters of Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola, offered Daniel Oikhena the scholarship.
The Director-General of the group, Amitolu Shittu, in a statement last week said that the group is ready to give scholarship to Daniel up to university level and also help him achieve his target of travelling through the air.

September 02, 2013