Nigeria: Unruly Travellers At JFK Airport

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Lagos — I arrived at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York at 8:30 a.m. to board a 1:30 p.m. scheduled flight to Nigeria. I went earlier than the 9 a.m. check-in time in light of the expected heavy holiday travelling and well aware that when Nigerians finally wake up from their slumber and lumber their way to the airport with their worldly possessions packed in big and countless suitcases, the nightmare would begin. Arriving at the check-in counter, I saw a white gentleman waiting patiently for the check-in time. He had coffee in one hand and the New York Times in the other. At the stroke of 9 a.m., there was only a handful of us as most of the would-be Nigerian passengers were still in bed or milling around New York City in preparation for their trip when they should have been at the airport. After check-in which lasted about 20 minutes, I had plenty of time to surf the Internet while waiting for the boarding time. I decided to wait around the immediate vicinity of the check-in counter with free wireless Internet access to my laptop as the impetus.

At about 12 noon, Nigerians started arriving in their numbers for a flight that was to depart at 1:30 p.m., imagine this. Being an international flight, we were advised to arrive at least three hours before departure time. But Nigerians were not to be bothered and I dare say that this ignoble posture is the bane of our problems. Most, as predicted came with all their worldly possessions falling all over the place inconveniencing other passengers in a packed airport with no space to spare as they tried to stabilize them on a trolley or some kind of cart. It was indeed a pitiable sight.

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