By Our Reporter
An Airpeace cabin crew member, Ms. Victory Maduneme, has refuted allegations that she tested positive for marijuana after a flight incident, insisting that subsequent tests conducted at a licensed aviation medical facility came out negative.
Narrating her ordeal, Maduneme said the alleged incident began on July 13 when the Nigeria Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB) commenced an inquiry after her flight landed.
“On the 13th of July, after we had landed, which was the day of the incident, we had to wait for NSIB to come on board. Then they came, started their investigation, and five hours later, they asked us to come into a room for them to do a test. So we all went into the room, and our blood samples were taken, and our urine was also taken,” she explained.
She noted that although such results are normally released within hours, no feedback was given that day. “Then, ten days later, on the 6th, I was called by the NCA to come and pick up a letter. I went to NCA in Lagos, and I opened the letter. I was in utter shock to see what was in my result, actually,” she said.
According to her, she immediately challenged the result. “I told the doctor that I’m very shocked to see this in my results and that it’s not possible for me to have this in my system. So he asked me to go back and come back in seven days, replying to their letter. But I didn’t wait for the seven days; I had to respond, which was on the 7th.”
Maduneme said she eventually complied with a request for a reconfirmatory test at the Cooper Aerospace Clinic. “When I went to meet the doctor and he came to see me, he asked me if I knew that marijuana usually stays in the system for 90 days and that if I had something like this, he was advising me to go back and come back later when everything had cleared from my system. I was like, no, if I go back and come back later, it actually proves that I have this kind of thing in my system. So I wanted to do the test, which was done, and it came out all negative,” she said.
She questioned why the NSIB failed to alert her airline if indeed marijuana had been found in her system. “If marijuana was found in my system, were they not supposed to tell this to my airline? They should have stopped me from flying because I’m a risk to the passengers on board, and my license would have been taken away from me. But no, they didn’t inform them of this until after two months. This is the second month, and it’s just coming out, and they are spoiling the image of the airline,” she said.
Maduneme maintained that the negative test cleared her of any wrongdoing. “If marijuana was supposed to stay in the system for 90 days, this test was done within a month. I did my test within a month; you can check it. And nothing was found in my system,” she insisted.
She alleged a possible smear campaign against her airline, warning that the report has put her career at risk. “If not for the kindness of my captain and my chairman, they would have sacked me and blacklisted me. And once that is done, no airline in the world, I repeat, no airline in the world, will pick me because now they’ve painted me as this person who has drugs in her system. This is really very bad,” she lamented.
Maduneme gave the NSIB 72 hours to withdraw the claim or face legal action. “In the next 72 hours, if NSIB does not come and reiterate whatever they said against me, then I think we should sue. This is really very bad,” she declared.