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In an apparent display of presidential powers, Dr Goodluck Jonathan, yesterday locked out the Edo State Governor, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, some of his aides as well as other commercial passengers from Benin City, where ironically Oshiomhole is chief executive.

The President’s security apparatus, The Sun learnt, simply shut down the Benin airspace over what it called ‘VIP’ movement.

President Jonathan was said to be returning from neighbouring Delta State where he had gone for campaigns for the forthcoming April polls.

So, for over 45minutes, after it got to Benin, the Air Nigeria plane, which left the domestic wing of the Murtala Mohammed Airport at 8.30am, hovered in the skies, unable to land. Running dangerously low on fuel, the pilot had to return to Lagos, amid hisses and curses by enraged passengers, many of whom had different engagements to catch up with in Benin, Warri, and neighbouring cities.

Oshiomhole, himself, was returning from Lagos where he had gone to attend The Sun Man of the Year Award as a special guest and was billed to address a campaign rally in Owan local government area of the state.

Oshiomhole, it was gathered, had left his hotel suite at Victoria Island as early as 7.30am in order to beat the traffic and meet the early morning flight. He did not reckon he would be trapped in the air due to the now notorious ‘VIP’ movement.

He and the other stranded passengers eventually took the rescheduled flight at noon.

Even though Oshiomhole refused to speak on the incident, other embarrassed and enraged passengers, who spoke to The Sun condemned the tyrannical practice of shutting down the airspace in the guise of VIP movement.

John, a chattered accountant, who was on the flight said: “This kind of uncivilised behaviour must stop. We are not in the jungle. How can you shut down the airspace because the president, vice-president, senate president or speaker of the House is airborne? What if we had run out of fuel and had a crash? Is the president’s life more precious than that of the ordinary citizen? What kind of oppression by man against his fellow man is this? This nonsense cannot continue.”

Another passenger, who preferred anonymity, said: “It is only in this country you have this kind of behaviour. What if we had had a crash? God forbid. I was terribly scared.

“The president must apologise for this uncivilised conduct. We are tired of government officials behaving as if they are more important than the people who put them there. They just behave like emperors. It is a shame!..

Canadian authorities are investigating an "unbelievable" incident in

which a passenger boarded an Air Canada flight disguised as an ..elderly man, according to a confidential alert obtained by CNN.

The incident occurred on October 29 on Air Canada flight AC018 to Vancouver originating in Hong Kong. An intelligence alert from the Canada Border Services Agency describes the incident as an "unbelievable case of concealment."

"Information was received from Air Canada Corporate Security regarding a possible imposter on a flight originating from Hong Kong," the alert says. "The passenger in question was observed at the beginning of the flight to be an elderly Caucasian male who appeared to have young looking hands. During the flight the subject attended the washroom and emerged an Asian looking male that appeared to be in his early 20s."...

After landing in Canada, Border Services Officers (BSOs) escorted the man off the plane where he "proceeded to make a claim for refugee protection," the alert says.

"The subject initially claimed to be in possession of one bag; however, flight crew approached the BSOs with two additional pieces of luggage which were believed to belong to the subject. One bag contained the subject's personal clothing items while the second contained a pair of gloves. The third contained a 'disguise kit' which consisted of a silicone type head and neck mask of an elderly Caucasian male, a brown leather cap, glasses and a thin brown cardigan."

The man put on the disguise for the officers who "noted he very much resembled an elderly Caucasian man, complete with mimicking the movements of an elderly person. The subject admitted at this time that he had boarded the flight with the mask on and had removed it several hours later," according to the alert.

Read the intelligence alert

"We can confirm that officials from the CBSA met a passenger arriving off AC018 Hong Kong to Vancouver on October 29 and the matter is still under investigation," said Air Canada spokesman Peter Fitzpatrick, who noted that "there are multiple identity checks before departure at the Hong Kong international airport, including Chinese government-run Hong Kong passport control, which Hong Kong originating passengers must undergo."

Hong Kong officials said they are aware of the incident and would call back with more information later.

Jennifer Bourque, regional communications officer for the CBSA, confirmed that "we intercepted an individual, on October 29, attempting to enter Canada under false pretenses on-board an Air Canada flight."

"CBSA can confirm that the foreign national is currently in CBSA detention," she said. "The individual will present before an IRB hearing. The officials of the CBSA will not disclose further information on this file."

Because of Privacy Act regulations, she said, she cannot provide details about specific cases.

"However, I can tell you that CBSA officers examine all passengers arriving on international flights at Vancouver International Airport," she said. "CBSA works closely with air carriers and local, national and international law enforcement partners, to ensure the safety of our borders and our communities. Getting the right information at the right time is a key element in keeping Canada's border closed to safety and security threats."

The agency would not discuss when or why the man put on the disguise or details about how he boarded the plane. But the alert indicated that the suspect boarded the plane with a board pass belonging to another passenger.

"It is believed that the subject and the actual United States Citizen passenger (whose date of birth is 1955) performed a boarding pass swap, with the subject using an Aeroplan card as identification to board the flight," the alert said.

Aeroplan is a credit card where card holders can earn frequent flyer miles.

Delta Airlines on Monday said a female passenger was found dead on one of its flights from Atlanta, United States to Lagos.

Delta sources said the 57-year-old passenger was accompanied by her son when she died on Monday. The Associated Press quoted the American carrier’s Corporate Communications Director, Europe, Middle East and Africa, Ms. Olivia Cullis, as saying that the passenger was found unresponsive early Monday aboard Delta Flight 53, about an hour out of Atlanta and about 11 hours from the time it took off.

Delta said it could not provide the passenger’s identity due to privacy restriction laws. Cullis added, “Approximately an hour from Atlanta, the crew of Flight 53 alerted flight operations that a passenger was unresponsive and had no vital signs. The flight landed normally and we are coordinating with medical authorities. Delta extends its sincere condolences to the passenger’s family.”

A statement by the Senior Manager, Media Relations, Delta, Susan Elliot, said the airline was working with medical authorities to determine the facts in the case..

AP quoted Atlanta’s police spokesman, Otis Redmond, as saying that foul play was not suspected. A Georgia Bureau of Investigation medical examiner’s investigator was sent to Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, Atlanta, according to the report.

Atlanta police spokesman Otis Redmond told AP that foul play was not suspected in the woman’s death. Georgia Bureau of Investigation spokesman John Bankhead said the woman’s body was taken to a crime laboratory for an autopsy.

Bankhead said the FBI was investigating the matter because the death occurred on an international flight.