A former president of the Trade Union Congress (TUC), Peter Esele, has fired a blunt warning amid the fallout from Fuji legend K1 De Ultimate’s unauthorized confrontation at Abuja’s airport: apologies are not a substitute for justice. Esele decried the way Nigeria’s laws appear pliant when fame is involved, warning that letting influential figures off the hook not only undermines accountability—but chips away at the very ethos of civic responsibility.
He lamented that everyday infractions—from traffic violations to airport run-ins—often go unchecked when public figures invoke the tired refrain of “Do you know who I am?” He challenged Nigeria to abandon this selective leniency, insisting that enforcement must be equal, irrespective of clout. In his view, K1’s incident should have triggered a swift legal response, but instead, the apology felt more like a photo op than a real consequence.
Esele’s words are a call to rebuild civic values: to teach respect for rules, empower institutions to act without fear or favour, and ensure that remorse is not mistaken for resolution. It’s a challenge to ensure that Nigeria’s laws protect everyone equally—even the admired—and that accountability, not influence, is upheld.
