News
Golden Tulip Denies Ejecting Turkish Airlines’ Passengers
The management of Golden Tulip Hotel in Apapa, Lagos has cleared the air on the reported rumour making the rounds in the media that it ejected Turkish Airlines’ passengers lodging in the hotel.
According to the management, such report is malicious, adding that nothing of such happened as the hotel took great care of the passengers.
Some Lagos-Instanbul bound Turkish Airlines’ passengers were lodged in the hotel on January 7, 2017, following the airline’s inability to carry its passengers due to bad weather in Instanbul, Turkey.
Reacting to the media reports, Mr. Paul Okojie, rooms division manager of Golden Tulip, said the hotel did not eject its Turkish Airlines’ passengers and had no reason to do so for “one of its most valuable clients.”
He, therefore, described the media reports as “false, unfounded, mischievous, a tissue of lies and a figment of the writers’ imagination.”
According to Okojie, “We were bewildered to read the reports in some newspapers. Let me state clearly that those reports were absolutely wrong and false, as we took care of the passengers lodging in our hotel providing them with befitting accommodation, breakfast, lunch and dinner. We also lodged the crew and Turkish Airlines staffers who came regularly to visit the lodging passengers.”
While stressing the need to always verify the facts before rushing to the press, Okojie said, “The intent of the journalists who published the story remain unclear, as the hotel management was not contacted by the journalists to confirm their reports before going to press. This is totally unfair and unprofessional, as the flight disruption affected all Turkish Airlines passengers heading for Instanbul, where the airline was experiencing bad weather.”
He explained: “Our hotel has a very solid and one of the most outstanding partnerships since inception with Turkish Airlines. So, we did not have any reason to eject our client’s passengers. The passengers were 232 and came in batches through Saturday 7th and Sunday 8thJanuary, 2017. This is contrary to rumour as reported by some newspapers that the passengers were totaling 410.
“As a matter of fact our sellable rooms in the hotel including those already being occupied by existing customers are 345. So, where do we get extra rooms to lodge 410 rooms?” he queried.
He explained that “What Turkish Airlines has done by keeping its passengers in a hotel due to the bad weather in Europe until it could guarantee their safety to be flown was within international standards as prescribed in the aviation industry.”
Okojie reiterated the hotel commitment to an enduring working relationship with Turkish Airlines, which he described as one of the most patronised airlines in Nigeria as a result of its affordability and high focus on safety.
“So far, most of the passengers have been air-lifted and only about 30 of them are still with us in the hotel and they are expected to be flown out of Lagos by Saturday, January 14, 2017,” he said.
It will be recalled that, Turkish Airlines could not pick passengers to their destinations via Istanbul on January 7, citing weather condition in Europe, especially in Istanbul and this affected its passengers leading to lodging them in hotels in Lagos.
Turkey is facing the harshest snow in 10 years which affected all flights coming into Instanbul, as the ‘heavy snow’ of 1.2 meter above sea level, has resulted in loss of lives.
The airline provided two reliefs for its passengers in Lagos advising them to proceed to its Head Office at 1, Adeola Odeku Str. Victoria island Lagos for a change of ticket to other available dates or ask for a full refund at their ticket purchase units, mostly at different travel agents, where they had purchased their ticket.
Turkish Airlines connects 243 international destinations and Istanbul, as the only city in the world having settled on two continents, serves as the main hub of the global carrier. It offers transcontinental advantages of its location in Eurasia and makes connecting flights to destinations all around the globe easier than ever.
INTERPOL’s African Cyberthreat Assessment Report 2026 revealed that Artificial intelligence accounts for 55 per cent of reported cybercrimes across Africa and making attacks faster, more sophisticated and increasingly difficult to detect.
The report warns that the continent’s rapid digital transformation, marked by more than 1.1 billion mobile subscribers in 2025, is being matched by an equally rapid evolution in cybercrime, while fragmented legislation and limited AI readiness among law enforcement agencies continue to weaken responses.
The 40-page assessment, based on survey data from 36 African member countries, said cybercrime has shifted from isolated criminal activity to an industrialised, borderless ecosystem powered by AI.
According to the report, East Africa has become a hotspot for mobile money fraud and ransomware attacks targeting critical infrastructure, while business email compromise (BEC) and romance scams are widespread across Central and West Africa.
Southern Africa, it noted, has become an attractive target for international cybercriminals due to its high level of internet connectivity.
The report also highlighted the growing financial impact of cybercrime across the continent, revealing that losses have more than doubled since 2024, rising from 192 million dollars to 484 million dollars.
It attributed the increase largely to AI-enabled scams, credential harvesting and automated social engineering attacks.
INTERPOL said online scams remained the most commonly reported form of cybercrime in 2025, with criminals exploiting mobile money platforms, social media and AI-generated content to deceive victims.
It added that 72 per cent of surveyed countries reported the existence of scam centres, with the highest concentration recorded in Southern and West Africa.
The report further identified digital sextortion and online harassment as persistent threats, driven increasingly by AI-generated deepfakes and synthetic media.
According to data from TrendAI, one of INTERPOL’s partners, about 600,000 sextortion incidents were detected during the reporting period.
Business email compromise schemes have also become more sophisticated, with AI being used to generate highly convincing email communications.
The report said Africa-based threat actors are increasingly targeting victims in Europe and North America using cyber infrastructure spread across multiple jurisdictions.
INTERPOL warned that the absence of real-time information sharing between banks, telecommunications companies and law enforcement agencies has created significant vulnerabilities in tackling financial cybercrime.
It said cybercriminals are no longer relying solely on stolen credentials but are now creating AI-generated synthetic identities by combining genuine personal information with fabricated details.
These synthetic identities, the report noted, have been used to bypass biometric verification systems, open bank accounts, obtain mobile loans and register SIM cards under false identities.
Neal Jetton, Director of INTERPOL’s Cybercrime Directorate, described cybercrime as one of the most significant criminal threats facing Africa.
“Cybercrime has emerged as one of the most significant criminal threats to the region. AI is automating every stage of a cyberattack from reconnaissance and phishing to extortion and evasion.
“However, we see that when countries work together, cybercriminal infrastructure can be identified, disrupted and dismantled,” he said.
Despite the growing threat, the report highlighted progress in strengthening cybersecurity across the continent.
It disclosed that 17 African countries enacted or amended cybercrime legislation in 2025, while Senegal launched an online reporting platform to improve responses to online offences affecting children.
The report also noted that regional capacity-building initiatives are helping to improve long-term cyber resilience.
INTERPOL said four major cybercrime operations conducted in 2025, Operation Serengeti 2.0, Operation Contender 3.0, Operation Sentinel and Operation Red Card 2.0, resulted in more than 1,500 arrests, the seizure of hundreds of electronic devices and the recovery of over 100 million dollars.
To address the growing threat, the report recommended the adoption of standardised digital forensic capabilities, stronger cross-border collaboration, greater investment in AI literacy for law enforcement personnel and formal public-private partnerships to improve cybercrime prevention, detection and response.
The African Cyberthreat Assessment 2026 forms part of INTERPOL’s African Joint Operation against Cybercrime initiative, funded by the United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, with data contributions from Fortinet, Mastercard, the Shadowserver Foundation, S2W and TrendAI.
Nigerian students will soon design, assemble, test and fly drones as part of their university education, following a partnership between Miva Open University and Abuja-based defence technology company Terra Industries.
The collaboration comes as Nigeria intensifies efforts to develop indigenous capabilities in advanced manufacturing and defence technology, with both organisations seeking to strengthen Africa’s pipeline of deep-tech talent.
The partnership will see students gain hands-on experience in drone engineering and related technologies through dedicated labs and industry collaboration.
The partners will establish robotics, drone and virtual reality laboratories across Miva’s study centres, beginning with a pilot facility in Abuja.
Students will also gain access to industry-led workshops, research opportunities, internships and mentorship in artificial intelligence, robotics, cybersecurity and autonomous systems.
According to the partners, Terra’s engineering teams will work alongside Miva faculty to integrate hands-on hardware training into academic programmes, exposing students to real-world engineering challenges and building industry experience before graduation.
Nathan Nwachuku, co-founder and CEO of Terra Industries, said Africa’s technological future depends on developing engineers capable of building solutions for local challenges.
“The engineers who will build Africa’s future must learn by building. This partnership creates opportunities for students to work with the technologies shaping modern security, infrastructure and autonomous systems,” said Nwachuku.
Miva Open University said the initiative forms part of its commitment to experiential learning, adding that students will have the opportunity to “design, test and fly drones as part of their academic experience”.
The partnership builds on Terra’s expanding role in Nigeria’s defence technology sector. Earlier this year, the company signed a joint venture with the Defence Industries Corporation of Nigeria to localise the production of drones, robotics systems and cybersecurity infrastructure, supporting efforts to strengthen domestic manufacturing and reduce reliance on imports.
Atte Ayodeji, a Nigerian computer scientist,has developed an artificial intelligence algorithm capable of detecting, counting, grouping and generating healthy hair follicles during hair transplant procedures, an innovation that earned him the Best Innovative Technology award.
Atte Ayodeji
Ayodeji also graduated with a Distinction in his Master of Science (MSc) in Computer Science from Birmingham City University on Friday, adding another milestone to an impressive academic year.
Beyond his award-winning hair transplant innovation, the Nigerian researcher developed a system and framework on Explainable Artificial Intelligence (XAI) as a professional responsibility in the diagnosis of lung cancer.
His dissertation received a silver award at the PGXPO2026 Winter, further highlighting the impact of his research in applying artificial intelligence to healthcare.
Sunday Dare, special adviser on Media and Public Communication to President Tinubu, celebrated Ayodeji’s achievements in a post on X, recalling how he first met him in 2019 during his National Youth Service.
“In 2019 when I became a Minister of the Republic, I met a young man of medium height, genteel with penetrating eyes: Atte Ayodeji. His words rarely come out and he could easily be passed by unnoticed. But I noticed him especially when my SA Kemi Areola brought him to me asking my approval for him to do his Youth Service in my office. I approved. From then on he was unstoppable. His brilliance shown and he developed skills beyond his frame.”
Highlighting Ayodeji’s recent accomplishments, Dare congratulated him saying, “Congratulations Atte. I am proud of you!”
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