stop calling this employment
okay guys, it’s time to board an ibom air flight heading to lagos from akwa ibom. these are the various individuals i’m doomed to interact with.
- person who checks that the name on my boarding pass matches my passport or identification document
- person who tears away the larger part of the pass, leaving me with the stub
- person who punches a hole in the stub
- person who pats me down
- person who checks the stub at the foot of the aircraft
- person who checks the stub when you climb into the aircraft
phew!
this silly behavior is rampant especially in government-adjacent parastatals within the country. it’s like someone gets a job creation mandate and is told they get points for coming up with the most asinine approach to solving the problem. i mean, someone to hole punch my boarding pass stub? calling it absurd doesn’t begin to cut it.
the federal government recently announced plans to add a levy to all outbound and inbound international flights, specifically for nigerians. the levy is supposedly meant to maintain a system that harmonizes data across various agencies that feel a need to keep tabs on your goings and comings. leaving aside the possibility of such a system being successfully implemented, it’s worth reflecting on how its absence has inconvenienced travelers for years.
don’t get me started on the person that casually asks you “where are you going?” when you are done with security at the new terminal in lagos. no laptop in sight or anything. makes you wonder why you should respond, since it clearly bears no actual utility and indulging is pretty much willful participation in your inconvenience.
at over 200 million nigerians, i can empathize with the fact that tackling the unemployment problem is a tough one. however, i will be remiss to not call out the brain dead attempts at addressing it.
The small mindedness of the leaders of this country will always be our downfall.
— Ozzy (@ozzyetomi) November 9, 2025
the education system in the country has been left to rot for years but our leaders do not give a flying fuck. the responsible ministries are staffed with people who should be back in school themselves, learning how the world works in 2025 and how to set up future generations for success.
the country stopped spending money on fuel subsidies but politicians bought themselves new cars and built themselves new mansions and offices. meanwhile, millions of children are out of school and an overwhelming percentage of 10 year olds cannot read a simple sentence. the individuals performing unnecessary checks and activities on my boarding pass are an inevitable end result. somehow, we are supposed to nod along like this makes sense.