DANA: Affected Families Lobby Passengers To Boycott Dana Air Over Safety

Forty families of  dead victims in the Dana plane that  crashed on June 3rd, 2012 have called for a boycott of the airline by air travellers, following irregularities recorded in the compensation of the victims’ families.

Speaking through M.O. Awoyemi & Co. the law firm representing their  interests, the  families said, “If you love your life, boycott Dana Airline. You owe it to yourself and your family. We want to call on all well meaning Nigerians to condemn the resumption of Dana Airlines and we  call on the House of Representatives to summon the Aviation Minister, Mrs. stella Oduah on this issue and ensure that Dana Airline operating license is withdrawn in line with the resolution of the House of Representatives.”

Mr. Bunmi Awoyemi, Managing Partner of the law firm  fingered Prestige Assurance Plc and its re-insurer of 70 per cent of the risk, Pritchard Insurance Limited/Lloyd’s of London in the irregularities associated with the compensation, blaming them for instructing their solicitors to pay only $30,000 per family, irrespective of whether the families lost more than one person in the crash.

According to him, only 13 of the 40 victims have been paid $30,000 per victim, while only 80 victims’ family members have been paid any form of compensation.

“Many of the 80 include families which lost multiple members of their families to the crash. For such families most of them were paid $30,000 per family instead of the mandatory $30,000 per victim in order to discourage them from suing in the United States.

“They deliberately want to postpone the remainder to be included with the balance of $70,000 they are offering in order to make victims family members sign off their rights to a law suit. They are doing this despite the fact that the Civil Aviation Act makes the payment of $30,000 per victim mandatory and payable within 30 days of any fatal air crash.

“This action is being perpetrated by Prestige Assurance Plc and its Re-insurer of 70 per cent of the risk, Pritchard Insurance Limited/Lloyd’s of London, who have instructed their solicitors to pay only $30,000 per family which explains why the Oyosoro’s and Ibe’s were each paid $30,000 each instead of $60,000 despite the fact that they each lost two family members each. As of today only one more of our remaining clients have been paid.”